Rex II
by LongLiveTheClones
Summary: The sequel to "Whatever Happened to Captain Rex?" Rex returns to Coruscant after being MIA for three months. Can he pick up and resume the life he once led? What happens to Ahsoka? What punishment will Cody suffer for leaving Ord Cestus with a team of renegade clones? Will the GAR tolerate independent thinking clones? Rated strongly T. Not suitable for younger readers.
1. Chapter 1 Battle's End

**Rex II**

**Chapter One**

"On three," Kix said, nodding to Travis as they carefully lifted the form of the injured ARC onto the med-stretcher. "Hold his legs steady," he directed Tek. Echo didn't stir as he was moved.

"Let's move," the medic said, heading toward the door.

"Fives. Travis. We have a situation," Commander Cody's voice was crisp, but taut with tension as it came through over the comm. He linked the ARC and the Lieutenant into the live feed showing the hostage situation with Rex. Travis gasped, and felt adrenaline flood his body. He took off on the heels of Fives, pushing his way across the crowded corridor and barreling for the entrance of the dungeons.

"Fives, I need you here, now. Lieutenant Travis, I need you to lead a group of troopers back to the hangars." Travis skidded to a halt, and watched with frustration as the ARC took off into the dungeons without him. He continued to listen though, as the 212th Commander relayed orders. "We're running out of time, and there's been trouble in the corridors. The last group took a wrong turn and we wasted additional resources tracking them down. I need someone to lead these groups who knows these corridors. We don't have time for mistakes."

Travis opened his mouth to object. Rex needed him. But, then he heard Cody switching back and forth relaying orders. The command officers descended into a debate with Rex. Knowing his vod, he probably was feeling a bit overwhelmed at the moment by all of this _helping_.

Travis acknowledged the order and cut the connection.

# # #

Travis glanced over his shoulder at the troopers assigned to him by Commander Cody. He had been entrusted with the lives of one hundred recently freed prisoners. He was the only one armed with a blaster.

Some of the clones had fashioned makeshift weapons with debris from the battle. He'd been tempted to order the troopers to abandon the crude defenses. He admired the tenacity of his vode, but their simple weapons wouldn't stand a chance against the 100 kilo simians. Travis' body was battered in more places than he could count from his all his recent entanglements with the Kazzies.

He looked back over his shoulder again, checking on the troopers. They kept up with the brisk pace he set with ragged determination, brothers helping others along. They were making good time, and had only two levels to go. They would be fine as long as they didn't run into any trouble.

He rounded the next corner, and ran headlong into a Kazzie patrol.

"Down! Down! Down!"

The clones automatically dropped as his barked command, but he'd lost precious seconds. He felt burning heat singe over his shoulders as a blast of fire singed his spauldron. He blinked, and switched his HUD over to night vision to compensate for the poor light of the tunnels.

He scowled. He couldn't tell how many simians were taking cover around the corner, but it was clear they were using a combination of slugthrowers and blasters. He heaved out a grunt of annoyance. It was fekkin' hard to defend against mixed weapons' fire. Slugs behaved completely differently from blast shots.

_Now, I'm just getting annoyed._

Travis steadied his rifle and returned fire, focusing on the small vulnerable portion in the simian's necks. He took out one target before being forced into a rolling dive under a return hail of mixed blaster and slugthrower fire.

_Fek. This is no good. We're pinned down._

Travis tried to dive backwards into the shelter of the wall as another wave of fire came at him, but there was no cover. A blastershot caught his rifle wrenching it painfully out of his already injured wrist. He cried out as tissues abused in the struggle with the simian hours earlier tore further.

He dropped down to his belly and awkwardly scooped up the rifle one-handed. But, he knew the odds of being able to accurately take out the entire patrol with one hand were not good.

Someone tapped him on the shoulder, startling him. He wondered how long the trooper had been speaking to him trying to get his attention. Travis pointed to the ear of his helmet. The universal signal for "comm system problems." It was easier than explaining he was deaf. The trooper started over again, speaking slowly, and repeating what he'd said from the beginning. "Lieutenant. You're injured. Let me help." The scarred trooper extended a hand out, reaching for the rifle.

Travis studied him a moment, and quickly decided there was something in the trooper's steely gaze he liked. He immediately handed over the rifle.

"Chopper. Five-oh-first," the trooper said succinctly, as then he pulled the weapon to his shoulder. He took cover next to Travis in the scant protection of the wall. With a rapid-fire accuracy rivaling that of the Galactic Marines, Chopper started blasting away at the patrol. His shots were so fast that the simians had no time to return fire. However, the Kazzies were in a better position of cover around the corner. They were locked in a complete stalemate.

Travis wanted to call for back-up, but knew there was no one. Every available trooper was already running evac duty or was fighting in the dungeons. He couldn't afford to distract Commander Cody, he already had his hands full with the 'Rex situation.'

The Marine glanced down at his belt. Travis had a quick flashback to hitting the fuel tanks on the flame throwing Kazzies when they pinned down outside the morgue. Kazzies on fire.

As far as he could tell, there were no flame-throwing simians here. But, maybe he could bring the fire to them. Travis yanked his last spare ammo clip off his belt, hefting it in his hand and looking toward the simians. The timing would need to be perfect. He looked over at Chopper, prepared to explain.

The 501st trooper glanced at him and grinned, the scars pulling on his gaunt face. "Whenever you're ready, Lieutenant."

Travis nodded and leaned back to arc the ammo pack down the corridor. It was nearly invisible in the dim light as it flew down the darkened corridor.

Chopper's face was completely calm as he focused on his shot. The two troopers immediately threw themselves down to the ground as a wave of fire chased over their heads. If he had hearing, Travis was sure the echoing sound in the hallway would have been tremendous.

_Ow._

Travis sighed, and wondered how many times he'd been thrown into the ground since arriving on Darkknell. His burgundy armor was a mess of black scorching with deep gouges and scratches. His undersuit was stuck to him with sweat, blood and the heat from the explosion. He wasn't sure where the suit ended and he began anymore. He looked up and dimly realized Chopper was speaking to him.

"Are you alright, Lieutenant?"

Travis nodded slowly, allowing Chopper to pull him to his feet. Truth was, he didn't feel totally OK. But, he got to his feet anyway.

He straightened up, looking back to check on the rest of the troopers. They were all straggling to their feet, and seemed unharmed. He sighed in relief. He didn't want to lose any troopers on his watch.

He gestured to Chopper, and together they cautiously moved around the corner to check for survivors.

The "Kazzie Patrol" was only two Kaz'harians. Strange. In the panic and in the darkness, it had seemed they were under attack by a much larger force.

Maybe the explosion was a bit of overkill.

They always look so much bigger in these dark corridors.

The comm unit on both of the Kaz'harians blazed to life with rapidly barked orders. Travis stopped and listened intently, wishing he understood more of the simian language. Immediately following, his comm unit scrolled words that brought bile to his mouth.

"All units; cease fire. Repeat. Cease fire immediately. Kaz'harians are departing. RV at main evac points."

Travis stared down at the dead Kaz'harians. One had thrown himself on top of the other in an attempt to protect his fellow warrior from the blast. It was exactly what Lance had done for him outside the morgue, saving his life. Both Kaz'harians had died with their eyes open, and they seemed to be staring directly at him with an accusing glare. He turned away abruptly, not wanting to see the bodies anymore. He quickly walked back to the safety of his brothers, giving them the news of the ceasefire. As he moved away from the corridor, he couldn't shake off the the eyes of the Kazzies and the feeling he'd killed for no real reason.

# # #

Keen awoke to a world of darkness and motion. He struggled to open his eyes.

_Fek. Why couldn't he open his eyes?_

"Gears! Watch the corners!"

"Watching them," grumbled a clone voice, so low Keen could barely hear him. "They're a blurry blob, like everything else."

Keen tried to sit up, but his body was restrained by a tight strap. He panicked and tried to get free.

"Hey, rest easy, vod. We're taking you to the medship."

He opened his mouth to protest and demand answers. But his lungs burned and his throat felt blistered and that simple action sent him into a coughing fit that plunged him into darkness again.

# # #

"Coric, there's no time for this," Rex grumbled, trying to push the medic's hands away. "It looks worse than it is. I'm alright."

"He tried to tell us the same thing," Fives said. "We bandaged his neck the best we could, but with cuts like those he's going to have some impressive scars under his helmet."

Ahsoka and Fives stood sentinel on either side of Rex while the medic worked, preventing the restless Captain from getting away. He glared impatiently at all of them as Coric held up a small probe from his mini medkit and began taking readings. Rex struggled to look over toward where Captain Ko was already leading troops away to be evacuated.

"Hold still, you know I'll sedate you," the senior medic threatened.

Rex gave Coric a mutinous look, but stopped fidgeting.

"Your vitals are steady, but you're showing signs of severe exhaustion. I'd say you're ready to collapse," Coric declared.

Rex blew out an exasperated breath. "It's been a long battle, Coric. We're all ready to collapse. We have to evac now."

"You're going to medbay as soon as we get back to the ship," the medic said gruffly, quickly tucking his medsupplies away. His brows furrowed worriedly and his voice dropped low. "You are coming back with us, aren't you Captain?"

Rex put a reassuring hand on Coric's arm, as he slid his helmet back on and straightened his shoulders. "We're all going home together." He checked his chrono. "18:33. We're barely going to clear atmo at this rate. Let's move."

# # #

Echo groaned and shifted, trying to ease the relentless ache in his shoulder.

"Easy, Echo."

"Kix?"

Fek. His voice didn't sound like him at all.

"Yes, it's me, vod. We'll have you in a medsuite soon," Kix's voice was rushed and tense.

The fekkin' blade felt like it was cleaving him in half. He tried to focus on Kix's slightly blurred form in front of him, guiding the medstretcher. He felt weak and wanted desperately to sleep, to pass back into unconsciousness again. But, somehow he knew if he gave in to the urge he wouldn't wake up this time. Mentally, Echo nodded to himself; he'd make it to the medsuite and Kix would take care of the problem like he had countless times before for the troopers of the 501st. In the meantime, Echo retreated to the manuals, going over regulations in his head, taking comfort in the dependability of the GAR.

# # #

"Catcher, status of the Separatist fleet?" Rex asked over the comm, trying to pace his breathing. He pushed air out through his nose as he barreled through the corridors.

"Holding steady. 9:47 Mark," Catcher reported.

Rex grunted in satisfaction, pleased with the ARC Captain's crisp efficiency. He would do well watching over the Legion on Ando.

They caught up to the last group of evacuees heading out to the ships. The hallway was crowded with clones.

"Move it troopers!" Rex yelled, his patience running thin and his endurance running low. Coric had been right. He was exhausted. But, he'd never admit it to the medic. He wasn't just tired. He was hungry. And, he ached much more than he'd let on. But, he would rest later, once they were all home.

Coric had gone on ahead to see the injured member of Leon's squad. Ahsoka was running beside him. It felt good to be reunited again with the Jedi padawan. They'd always worked well together and it was reassuring to be side-by-side in a battle. But, they needed to talk about everything else. Rex understood more about relationships now after two months in Ando. It wasn't enough that he cared deeply for Ahsoka. Relationships were incredibly complex and duty was clear and simple. He knew what he had to do. He'd talk to Ahsoka when they return to the ship. He glanced over at her quickly. Her presence did feel reassuring, though, after all their time away. He basked in the warmth of being near her again.

They arrived at the entrance of the hangars and he bellowed at the troopers again for good measure. He chased them all the way to the ramp of the Corrie-bound ship making dire threats about horrendous cleaning details if they didn't move faster. He halted at the base of the ramp in satisfaction and looked around. The hangar was almost clear.

"Catcher, evac status?" Rex asked.

"Nicely done, Captain," the ARC said, "watched it from here. All evac teams have boarded, except for one of your medics. All of the Andoan Legion is on-board, except Travis, who is ignoring my hails, and Mako, who is doing a medical consult with your medic. Mako said he's aware of the time."

"Acknowledged," Rex said, and knew the medics were likely working on the badly injured commando from Leon's squad. But, that didn't explain the whereabouts of Travis. He looked around in puzzlement, wondering what trouble the Marine had gotten himself into this time.

"Rex!"

The five oh first Captain shifted his weight to avoid falling as he was grabbed in a bone crushing hug.

"Found him," Rex told Catcher. "I'll shove his shebs up a ramp." He disconnected from Catcher, and turned his attention to the Marine, grunting in pain as his injured chest was squeezed. "Fek! Travis! Get off!"

"Thought you'd left without a good-bye, di'kut," Travis grumbled, smacking Rex hard enough in the pauldron to send him stumbling backwards.

The five oh first captain grunted, and reached up to rub at his aching shoulder. Then, he groaned again as just the act of raising up his arm made him hurt worse. He gave up on moving at all. "Travis, fek, quit it!" He resorted to his tried and true methods with the vod he knew better than any other. He smacked the Marine hard in the back of the helmet. The sound reverberated in the hangar.

Travis' burst of filtered laughter echoed out through the helmet.

Ahsoka shook her head, riveted by the exchange.

Rex suddenly seemed to remember the Jedi padawan was present. "Ahsoka, this is my second-in-command, Travis," Rex said, making a hasty introduction, before turning his full attention back to the Marine.

"Whoa. Whoa. Whoa," Travis said, turning to Ahsoka. He tugged off his filthy helmet and clipped it to his belt. He pulled off his equally dirty gloves, grimacing slightly as one hand came free, and shoved the m on his belt. He peered at his hands to make sure they were at least somewhat clean. He first bowed deeply, then extended a hand. "Ma'am."

Ahsoka raised up an eyebrow, looked at Rex, and took the extended hand to shake it. Travis adjusted her hand slightly and lifted it up to his lips. He gave the Jedi a slow, lingering kiss on the back of her fingers.

Rex glared. His second had obviously learned way too much during his time on Ando. "Travis," he hissed.

The Marine took his time pulling his lips away. "Just wanted to see what all this fuss was about. We did storm a planet for this Jedi."

Rex turned red and started coughing.

Travis burst out laughing.

Ahsoka smiled, and made no effort to pull her hand from Travis' grasp. "How do you know Rex?" she asked politely.

"We go way back," Travis said.

Ahsoka frowned slightly at the enigmatic answer.

"We trained together on Kamino," the Marine clarified.

"Captain," Catcher's voice cut in from Rex's gauntlet, "8:05. Mark. Coric has finished his medical consult and is on his way to your position."

"Acknowledged," Rex said. He took a deep breath, and turned his attention back to Travis. His brother still looked amused and pleased with himself. At the serious look on Rex's face, the Marine dropped Ahsoka's hand and stood up straight. "Travis, we need to talk-"

"You're giving the Legion to Catcher," Travis said without preamble. Rex opened his mouth to explain further. The Marine put up a hand to forestall him. "You don't need to say anything. It's the right thing to do."

Rex reached forward and grasped Travis in a bone-crushing hug, ignoring all the places he hurt.

"Good luck," Rex said, his voice sounding thick and barely understandable. He could hear footsteps running toward him. His vision was suspiciously blurry. He blinked to clear away the moisture, letting the moment pass. Fek. This was no good. Clone captains did not get emotional.

He released Travis. "As soon as we clear atmo, light this place up," he ordered gruffly as Coric ran up to them.

The Marine nodded, patting a series of det timers on his belt. Rex's gaze swept the hangars, doing one last check. Empty except for the four of them.

"Captain. 8:00 Mark," Catcher said.

"Coric is here. On our way," Rex acknowledged as they took off at a run for their designated evac ships. He glanced back over his shoulder and saw one last view of the back of Travis, hightailing it for the medical ship.

As the five oh first members bolted up the ramp, the pistons brought the hatch to a close. They had to run at an angle to make it the rest of the way inside. Rex felt the comfortable rumble of the engines roaring to life.

He wanted to sit. Fek. He wanted to collapse. He braced a hand against the wall as he was hit with a wave of dizziness.

"Rex," Coric said, grabbing him by one arm. "You need to go to medbay."

"I know," Rex conceded, "I do." He knew he he wasn't in the best of shape. The medic gave him a surprised look. He was usually the last person to admit he wasn't in top form. "Give me just a few minutes, alright, Coric? I need to see this through. I'll meet you in the medbay," Rex said, stubbornly pushing off the wall. He forced his legs to steady themselves out.

_Fek. Don't collapse._

The senior medic stared him down. "I'm staying with you."

"You have better places to be."

Coric crossed his arms across his chest and gave him a look.

Rex scowled. There was never any use arguing with a medic. "Fine." He grabbed the trooper who'd closed the ramp and obtained directions to the bridge. The Kaz'harian ship followed the same basic ship as a Jedi cruiser, but everything seemed larger and elongated. The corridors seemed endless. He heaved a quiet sigh of relief under his breath when they arrived at their destination.

The bridge was a mixture of order and chaos as clones struggled to make sense of the Kaz'harian controls. Cody was a calm in the middle of the storm, issuing commands and answering questions. At the helm, Hawk was struggling to reach controls that were too high and not designed for human-sized hands.

"Status," Cody said.

"Maintaining course and speed," Hawk immediately reported. His hands moved over the controls. "Coordinates set for Coruscant… I think. Making calculations for the jump to lightspeed."

"You think?" Cody asked.

"Everything's in Kaz'harian, sir," Hawk said. "The numbers are the same, but the lettering is so vastly different from Aurebesh, I'm not entirely sure what I entered." The pilot gave an apologetic shrug.

"Do we have a linguistics expert onboard?" Rex asked.

Cody pivoted around and glanced at the three newcomers behind him, as he took in Rex's appearance. He raised up an eyebrow. "Tough day, Rex?"

Rex snorted.

"And, yes, already on his way. We have a Republic Commando who is one of the top linguists in the GAR."

The bridge door swished open and Leon rushed through. The commando's features were pale and wan, his shoulders slumped with grief and loss.

Cody waved the commando on through, and brusquely said: "Weapons control, first and then helm."

Leon nodded and immediately set to work.

The viewscreen split into three views, one showing their position on the map heading away from Darkknell toward the edges of the Darkknellian galaxy. The second view showed the incoming Separatist fleet heading toward the planet and the third was a live feed with Catcher.

"Three minutes and closing," Catcher announced.

"Have we been detected?" Cody asked.

"No, sir," Broadside said, from the secondary engineering station.

Catcher spoke something off-screen to his crew. He spoke back to Cody. "We aren't seeing any signs of detection on our end either."

"Put the fleet behind that planet," Cody said, pointing to the enormous gas giant they were approaching. "It should mask our signature. If we keep moving, we have more of a chance of being detected."

"Yes, sir," Catcher said, deferring to Cody's authority, "relaying orders to all ships."

"Hold position here," Cody said.

"1:20 Mark." Catcher announced.

Everyone waited and just watched the map and the viewscreen for the next 120 seconds. No one spoke. The Separatist fleet appeared, and it was enormous. Ship after ship filled the screen.

Rex dispelled a long breath. If they'd still been planetside, they would found themselves up against tens of thousands of battle droids. But, these same ships were also ringed with hundreds of vulture droids. They were in no position for a prolonged space battle.

"60 seconds, mark." Catcher said up on the screen.

The viewscreen split into four views, revealing Travis in the cockpit of the medship holding multiple det controllers. "Captain, Commander, Captain," the Marine said, and somehow managed to be both cocky and respectful at the same time.

"The main section of the Separatist fleet has touched down on Darkknell," Catcher announced, "except for the two dreadnaughts."

"Circle our ships around," Cody said. "Attack formation Alpha. Lieutenant Travis, get ready."

"I hope you've figured out those weapons' systems, Captain," Cody said, nodding to Leon.

"Working on it, sir," the commando said hurriedly, and then turned his attention back to Contrail, the newly appointed weapons officer. The commando was rapidly pointing out various aspects of the controls, and referencing back to his datapad.

"You two have about fifteen seconds to figure it all out," the 212th commander said.

"No pressure," Leon grumbled, and immediately resumed working.

Rex chuckled under his breath. He wanted to offer to help, but all that he'd picked up about the Kaz'harian language were a few expletives. He wasn't sure those were on the weapons' controls.

He watched tensely as they came around the backside of the gas giant and snuck up on the two giant Seppie supply ships.

"All ships. Prepare to fire on my signal," Cody said, "Fire! Now. Lieutenant Travis."

The two ships in front of them disappeared into a sudden fireball after the unexpected attack by ships previously thought of their allies. Simultaneously, down below on the planet, the rest of the fleet, disappeared along with the Kaz'harian fortress. Everyone the explosion so massive they could see it from space.

Finally, Travis broke the silence with a long sigh. "I'm going to miss that place." Nobody responded. "Aw come on, we had some good times. We blew things up. We made new friends." Still no response. His voice trailed off. "Alright, just me then."

Rex let out a weary smile underneath his helmet, but he could feel his strength flagging.

"Catcher, Travis, we're going to cut off comms now. We'll need to maintain comm silence between us, for your protection, as discussed earlier," Cody said.

"Agreed," Catcher's chin dipped slightly in curt acknowledgement.

Rex glanced over at Cody in surprise. Catcher and Cody had been talking before he'd even arrived back at the ship.

"Good luck," Cody said, giving a respectful nod to Catcher.

The ARC Captain gave a perfect, crisp salute back and then cut the connection. Travis was left alone on the comm with Cody and Rex. He gazed into the screen, studying Rex with his trademark quirk of a smile. He saluted as well, although not nearly as formally and the smile never left his lips. The screen went black for a moment before switching back to a view of space.

Rex was cut off the Andoan Legion.

He could still see Catcher's respectful salute, perfect down to GAR regulation, and Travis' quirky smile. In his mind's eye, he was picturing every member of the Legion. Good men, every one of them and he'd never see them again; never talk to the paralyzed men, never hear Mako's irrepressible humor….. Fek. He was leaving them all behind.

The reality hit him with great finality.

He was exhausted. He needed to sit. He had no idea where. This wasn't his ship. He had no crew quarters here. For the first time in a week, he didn't know where to go or what to do. He stood there, staring at the viewscreen which now showed the backside of the gas giant.

"Resume course for Coruscant," Cody ordered.

"Yes, sir," Hawk said.

Rex blinked, trying to focus. So, the RC Captain was an expert in languages. Rex tried to tuck away this new piece of information, but his brain seemed to be moving at half the speed it normally did.

_It's OK. As long as I keep moving, I'll be fine._

He stepped forward, intending to ask Leon the status of the translations. But, he never made it. The dark plating of the bridge came toward his face.

_Fek it. I should've worn my bucket._

He never felt himself hit the deck. Rex blinked up blearily.

"Hey, Coric," he mumbled, staring up at the medic. He reached up to swat away the bright light the medic was shining in his eyes, but groaned from the simple movement. "Ow."

"Get him to medbay," Cody said, standing over them and looking down at Rex, "Waxer, make sure he gets there."

"Yes, sir," Coric and Waxer said.

"And, Coric?" Cody added.

"Sir?"

"Make sure he stays there."

"Understood."

"Hello, Captain."

"Waxer," Rex murmured thickly, glancing over at the orange and white armor of the 212th trooper. He tried to get his feet under him so he didn't end up getting completely dragged to the medbay.

In the end, he did manage some stumbling steps but was mainly carried by Coric and Waxer.

"I'm fine, Coric," Rex slurred out, "just tired."

Coric snorted. "Nice to see that some things haven't changed."

The clone captain craned his head and peered at him owlishly. "You've grown a beard. That's different."

The medic glared at him. "Not exactly by choice."

"Still," Rex slurred out. "It looks good on you. You should keep it."

"Oh?" Coric retorted, "you going to change GAR regs so I can sport all this facial hair?"

Rex barked out a short laugh. "Coric, I'm not even in the GAR."

Both Waxer and Coric stared, not finding it funny.

"Maybe you should spare your breath," the medic said, turning away.

# # #

Medbay was a mess.

Coric took one step inside and decided things were going to change immediately. The enormous room was a chaos of activity, much like the bridge, but there had been order under Commander Cody. This was no way to run a medbay. Coric squared his shoulders.

# # #

Rex was feeling admittedly worse by the time they stepped into medbay. He focused on keeping his feet under him. It had been easier when Coric was talking to him.

Rex was pulled into the medbay by Waxer and Coric. His jaw dropped as he stared at the haphazard organization within. Troopers were running back and forth yelling for supplies, trying to tend to injured vode lying on oversized bunks. He glanced over at Coric and saw the stormy expression on the medic's face. Rex pulled free from the others and stood on his own.

"Atten-shun!" he barked sharply over the chaos, using the voice he did to whip shinies into shape.

The effect was immediate. Every eye in the room, even the wounded, immediately turned to the door. With an efficiency that would've passed even the strictest inspection, the men in the room snapped to attention. Even the wounded struggled to pull themselves up at his sudden appearance.

"At ease," he said, not wanting the injured to contort themselves any further. But, everyone remained riveted, fixated on his appearance.

He heard a few excited murmurs of "It's the Captain."

"Sergeant-medic Coric is in charge. They're all yours," Rex murmured to Coric, glancing about uneasily and wishing he had his helmet on.

"I'll be back for you shortly," Coric said. He stepped further into the medbay and immediately took charge. "Triage," he snapped at two medics Rex recognized but couldn't recall their names in his exhausted state. "Supply count," he ordered two troopers. Orders came from his voice even as he gestured to several troopers standing helplessly near the wall. "You and you, assist that medic."

"You should lean on me, Rex. You're exhausted," Ahsoka coaxed, soothing.

Rex nodded, and slipped an arm over the padawan's shoulders. He felt a sense of familiar calm as he came into contact with her skin again, but also a strong sense of guilt for taking so much pleasure in touching her. Being near her was such a comfort to him in his battered state. He would hold on to her for just a short while. "What's going on?" he murmured, leaning down to whisper close to her montral.

Ashoka shivered at his breath on her sensitive organ. Rex made an immediate note of the response. He probably should pull back and put some distance between them. It took all of his self-control to pull back and remove his arm from her shoulders and stand on his own again.

It took Ahsoka a beat longer to respond than normal. She avoided making eye contact, but stared straight ahead as she answered the question.

Ahsoka twisted slightly so she could make eye contact with him. There was a bright shine in her eyes as she looked directly at him. "Something has changed in their relationship with you. They've always respected you as their Captain. But, now… it's different."

Rex stared at the padawan, lost slightly in her blue eyes, and it took a moment to focus on what she was saying. "Some are 212th. I'm not even their commanding officer," he protested.

"Doesn't matter," Ahsoka said, her words confident, "They're all exhibiting the same reaction to you. Almost a sense of awe."

Rex looked to Waxer again to see if he had an explanation. "I don't get it. No offense. You're still the same Captain Rex to me, sir."

"None taken," Rex said, feeling relieved he could count on some troopers to still act normally. "And, thank you for that, Waxer."

The Ghost Company trooper chuckled. "Anytime, sir."

Rex felt blackness start to swim in front of his vision. He wasn't going to remain standing much longer. He felt himself wavering.

"Rex?" Ahsoka reached toward him.

"Just a little dizzy," Rex muttered.

_Aw, fek it._

Suddenly, the deck plating was rushing up at him again.

"Coric!"

Rex winced. He didn't think the Jedi padawan could shout that loud. She was starting to sound like him.

"Put him over here."

Rex stared blearily up at Coric as he was hauled off the floor and moved onto a bunk. Fek. Ow! Not a bunk. A friggin' rock slab. What did the Kazzies sleep on anyway?

All the movement brought on a new set of problems. Rex's dizziness intensified and he felt nausea set in. He started gagging and immediately felt something thrust under his chin. Leave it to Coric to be in a medbay for five minutes and already have supplies organized.

"When was the last time you ate?" Coric was pressing him back into the bunk and shining something into his eyes.

What was it with the medic and those fekkin' lights?

"Coric," Rex grumbled, swatting at the light again.

"Rex," the medic repeated sternly, "how long has it been since you've eaten?"

"Uhhh…" Rex muttered blankly. He had no idea.

"You been hydrating?" the medic asked, running a scanner over him.

"Yes," he ground out, annoyed. He wasn't a shinie. He knew better than to allow himself to dehydrate during battle.

"Trying to figure out why you're vomiting," Coric muttered, more to himself as he stroked his grizzled chin thoughtfully. "You hit your head?"

Rex snorted. "No." He smirked., finding the question funny. for some reason.

"Something amusing you?" the medic asked, fussing with something Rex couldn't see. He suspected Coric was only making small-talk with him to distract him, but he decided to answer the question anyway.

"My head is about the only part of me that wasn't hit," Rex said, swallowing hard to push back a second wave of nausea. "I was hit in the stomach, Coric. By a Kazzie. It's enough to make anyone vomit."

His neck seal was pulled back quickly and Coric jabbed him with two hypos in quick succession.

"Ow! Coric!" Rex complained, glaring at the medic, "warn a brother next time."

"I gave you something for the nausea, and something extra strong for the pain. Although, finding a place for a hypo in your neck was a challenge. What happened to your neck?"

"Same Kazzie," Rex said thickly, having difficulties keeping his eyes open. "Big knife."

Coric busied himself with removing his chest plates. A second pair of hands reached in to deftly assist and he immediately recognized the small hands. She certainly had practice in undressing him. Bad thoughts. He was quickly stripped bare to the waist.

"What's this?" the medic held up a piece of Rex's modified armor. "Never felt such a heavy chest piece."

"Travis… modifications," Rex muttered, yawning hugely. He glanced up at the piece. It had a hole in it from the blast, but otherwise had held up. He owed the Marine. Twice now.

"Travis," Coric said, still working through the names of clones he'd barely met.

"My second-in-command," Rex clarified, and then winced inwardly. He saw a flicker of emotion pass across the medic's Coric's bearded face. Coric had always been As sergeant, the medic was his second in command.

The medic's face was impassive as he turned his attention to studying the blast wound. "It doesn't look too bad. A good deal of superficial skin burning, but no internal damage. Your upgraded armor served you well." He held up Rex's ab plate, and noticed it contained no enhancements. "Why reinforce only the one piece? A gut shot can be fatal." His eyes narrowed. "It's like you knew where you'd be shot."

Rex avoided eye contact with the medic, and avoided the question. He yawned hugely instead, although he knew the medic. The topic would come up again. He hissed as the medic probed at his the chest wound. The medic moved on to his ribs, pushing and watching for reactions. "Ow! Fek, Coric," Rex grumbled as Coric probed his ribs.

"You've got fractures here… and here."Ribs are broken."

Rex withheld a sarcastic comment. Yes, of course his ribs were broken. He could've told Coric that up front and saved himself all this fekkin' poking. The medic moved on to his shoulder. "How you'd get this bruising?"

"Cracking open cells," Rex sighed, "a lot of them." He glanced up and saw the medic's expression soften.

Coric paused in his examination. "Thanks for coming for us. We were starting to think we'd be stuck there forever," the medic said.

Rex thought of Leon and his team of commandos. "The Republic did try to find you. You weren't forgotten."

"Yes, but you got us out," Coric pointed out.

"And, Cody," Rex reminded him, "and his entire team." And, my entire team, who we can't be mentioned anymore.

"True," Coric conceded, "but for some reason it's you who stands out." He glanced backwards at the other clones in medbay, many of whom were still surreptitiously watching Rex.

Rex was too tired to argue the point. He closed his eyes as Coric finished up his exam. The medic continued his examination, peeling back the bacta bandages off his neck. He also removed his knee brace and leg armor. At the end of his exam, he folded his arms across his chest. "You're going in bacta."

Rex opened his mouth to object. He had too much to do. He had an entire Legion to manage on a ship of unfamiliar design-

"Commander Cody ordered you to medbay," the medic pointed out. "I'm ordering you into bacta." You're outranked. We'll take care of things while you're in the tank."

"How many tanks does the ship have?" Rex tried one final tact. "Surely there are others who have greater need-"

The medic shook his head. "There are enough. Rex, you need to be in bacta."

Rex shook his head again. This was more than simple stubbornness on his part. The fate of the Andoan Legion was at stake, and he and Cody had to get their stories straight. "How long? Coric, I need to debrief the men and meet with Cody-"

"Less than a day, Rex. You'll have time to get all of that done before we hit Coruscant."

The weary captain finally nodded, and never saw the hypo Coric deftly slid behind him to knock him out.

# # #

_A/N: Welcome to Rex II! Thank you for your patience as the team and I worked out all the planning details on getting Rex II/Ando launched. We ended up with so much content that we will be dividing the story up into two major sections. One story will be entitled "Rex II" and will encompass Rex's side of the story. The other story will simply be entitled "Ando" and will tell the story from the POV of the Andoan Legion. Yes, in case you are wondering, the two stories will intersect again and merge into one. For the sake of simplicity, we will call that story, "Rex III." "Ando" will be launching around the beginning of April._


	2. Chapter 2 Let Her Go

**Chapter Two**

Being in bacta is a strange thing.

Rex was never able to stay asleep for long in the tank. He had too much pent-up energy. He was only ever unconscious until the sedatives wore off. He awoke after several hours, disoriented, groggy and floating in the tank. He flexed his limbs carefully, and glanced around. The harness, designed to hold Kaz'harians, had been jury-rigged to accommodate him. He didn't want to push his luck and was careful not to pull against the bindings. He already felt better, although he could tell he was not healed. When he breathed too deeply, he could feel where the Kazzie had cracked his ribs. His chest tingled as burned tissues forcibly regenerated. It was a nauseating sensation to feel bacta push his body in ways that were not natural. He'd lived his life at twice the pace of normal. As a clone trooper, he accepted death, too, would come at an early age.

As they sped through hyperspace toward the vast city planet, he thought about the slow pace of life on Ando. He was trading one extreme of life for another. The chill of the tank and tang of bacta in his nostrils reminded him of the chill winds and brine smell of the vast Andoan sea. He thought he'd never get used to the cold creeping into his armor during early morning training, but now found himself craving the sight of snow gently dusting across Fisherman's Field. As the bacta was now forcibly changing his body, Rex knew he was a different man from the one who had left Coruscant three months ago.

He forcibly redirected his thoughts, intentionally breathing deeply and bringing up a flare of pain from his ribs. He used the burst of adrenaline to sharpen his mind and started mentally writing debriefings for the 501st. He finished and glanced at the chrono on the wall across the medbay. Fek. Still another quarter rotation left in the tank. He watched the chrono, willing it to move faster. The Kazzies had their own alphabet, which only Leon could decipher, but thankfully they used Galactic Standard Numerics. It meant Rex could be precisely bored down to the millisecond.

He started working on Cody's briefings for the 212th. Their messaging would have to be precisely synchronized. There could never be any mention of the troopers who helped free the two Legions. Preparing briefings came easily to Rex. He started working through a mission report for General Skywalker. Then, for good measure, he drafted a report for Cody to give to General Kenobi. Rex had done it in the past when they'd worked joint missions. As one of the highest ranking officers in the GAR, Cody had a great of added responsibilities and flimsiwork. He was always appreciative when Rex offered to help shoulder the load.

Another glance at the chrono. Shab.

Maybe he could signal Kix or Coric and convince them to let him out early. Like that had ever worked in the past.

Rex decided to run through his cover story for the GAR. He'd been thinking it through for a long time, ever since he started planning the mission to Darkknell. It was interspersed with multiple factual elements, lending veracity, leaving out crucial details which betrayed the Andoan Legion.

He ran the story through his mind time and again until he started to believe it himself.

The medical transport to Kamino was attacked by pirates. With no defensive capabilities, the ship took massive hull damage and crashed on a nearby desolate planet. Rex was one of a few clones who survived the crash with major injuries. The extreme cold of the planet quickly took its toll on the already battle injured and weakened clones. Rex woke up on a salvage vessel many days later and was told he was the only survivor found. The salvage ship was already headed to the far reaches of the Outer Rim. They agreed to drop him off at a Republic outpost, but could not do so until their return voyage. Once he was sufficiently recovered, he was added as a member of the salvage crew. Almost three months later, he was dropped off on a planet on the furthest edges of Republic held space. He saw an HNN feed about the missing Legions. He also heard a rumor about captive clones on Darkknell. He used his wages from the salvage crew to secure passage to the planet where he happened upon Commander Cody and his assault team. With the aid of General Unduli, Captain Leon and his RC squad, and Commander Offee, they were able to locate and free the captive clones. Their efforts were aided by the Kaz'harians themselves who had an internal political coup and rebelled against the current leader of the base.

Granted, it was a _slightly_ altered version of reality. But, he would do what was needed to protect the Andoan Legion.

Official reports he could handle. He'd spent a lifetime trained in the ways of the military. It was all he knew.

But, then there was… Ahsoka.

Nothing he'd ever trained for equipped him to handle a relationship. Everything was so complicated right now. He'd do anything to protect her from him and what he had to do. She didn't need to be caught up in all of this mess. Everytime he was near the Jedi padawan he wanted to be closer to her. He had to fight against the urge to touch her. It was growing increasingly difficult.

On Ando, he'd seen his brothers happy, truly happy, for the first time in their lives. And, he knew exactly why.

Travis. Dart. Catcher. Hok.

He'd seen all of them with their women. Rex knew what he wanted. He'd seen what a relationship between a man and a woman could be. But, his circumstances were different. He wasn't on Ando. He could never have such a relationship with the woman he l-

Rex saw the doors to the medbay open, and his breath caught in his throat.

Ahsoka.

Kix greeted the padawan, and as one, they looked over to his tank. He snapped his eyes shut and slumped in his harness. He heard muffled voices outside his tank. He struggled to hear what they were saying, but could not discern words through the thick viscous liquid, the bubbling of the tank and the mechanical sound of his breather. The conversation stopped a minute later.

_'Rex.'_

Ahsoka's presence brushed up against his mind. He ignored it, refusing to acknowledge he was conscious.

_'Rex.'_ The brush was stronger.

He closed off his mind, blocking Ahsoka out.

She stayed outside of his tank for several hours. He could feel the moment she left. His eyes popped open, and he watched her leave. He blew out a long sigh, feeling the bubbles tickle against his face.

Coric was watching him from across the medbay. He looked toward where Ahsoka had retreated and back toward Rex. He shook his head slowly. The simple motion seemed so condemning.

Rex groaned, the sound echoing in the bacta, causing him to choke on the cloying liquid. For an unsettling moment, he felt as if he was drowning. Coric walked over to the tank, checking Rex's vitals. He seemed satisfied with the readings, but then stared Rex down. Disapproval was clear in every line of his body. He shook his head as he walked away. Rex's lungs had settled down, but he still felt as if he were drowning. He hung his chin to his chest, unable to think of anything but Ahsoka.

# # #

Barriss quietly knelt down next to the unmoving form of her Master. The medics had successfully taken the pressure off her cerebrum and the Jedi Master had settled into a deep healing trance. But, she was not likely to wake up before they returned to Coruscant. She would be transferred to the Jedi Temple and continue healing there. The clone troopers had moved her Master out of medbay and into a spacious room with Barriss.

She tucked her legs underneath her and attempted to relax into meditation. She was restless. She was dressed once again in her familiar Jedi garments. Ahsoka had returned her clothing, and was now wearing the same makeshift clothing as the rest of the newly freed prisoners. The only ones on the ship still in traditional Republic attire were Barriss, Rex, Leon's squad and the rest of the assault team from Ord Cestus.

Barriss focused on her breathing and tried to find comfort in the soothing patterns of meditation. Her Master was nearby. They were free and headed , her mind refused to quiet. She could not find her calm center. She continued to sit. Her calves started to cramp painfully. She tried to ignore the discomfort, but soon her entire body began to tense up. She finally gave up, knowing she could not force the issue. Barriss stood slowly, rubbing vigorously at stiff muscles.

She checked on her Master again. Perfectly fine. She looked different without her head garment. Less severe. Barriss carefully braided her Master's dark hair. Her Master seemed less imposing now and more like an ordinary woman. Barriss knelt by her side and watched her Master sleep, wondering why she hadn't made this observation before. After many hours, Barriss fell asleep by her Master's side. When she awoke, her Master's condition was _still_ unchanged. After several more hours of inactivity, Barriss knew she _had_ to get out of the room. Even her Jedi patience had worn thin. She quietly left the room and started exploring the hallways of the large ship.

In a corner lounge, she spied an orange and white armored figure slumbering awkwardly in an oversized chair. From the way his limbs were arranged askance, it looked as if he'd stopped to rest and dropped asleep from exhaustion.

_Cody?_

She brushed out gently toward the figure with the Force, but did not feel the lick of fiery orange which always surrounded the 212th commander. She was about to move on when the clone's eyes snapped open and focused on her. It was unsettling the way all the clones could instantly snap from sleep to full alertness. She wondered how the Kaminoans had managed to program _that_ into their genome.

"Commander."

"Trapper," she greeted the trooper she knew was one of Cody's closest friends. They stared at each other for a beat.

The clone cocked his head to the side. "Something I can do for you, Commander Offee?" Despite the exhaustion evident on his face, his eyes were alert. His armor was clean, but also heavily scored with recent signs of battle damage.

"How are you?" Barriss rushed out.

Trapper's lips quirked up into a smile, and the gesture immediately and painfully reminded her of Cody. It was a flirtatious move that was unintentionally sexy and she felt her stomach tighten. He studied her for a moment before he answered. "I'm tired. Sha-" He caught himself and corrected his rough trooper language, and started again. "Very tired." He pursed his lips, and studied her thoughtfully. Barriss couldn't help but smile at him. There was something about this clone that was very appealing. "Mmmm… but I don't think you are wandering the halls looking for clones so you can ask them about their fatigue levels?" His warm brown eyes regarded her with amusement.

Barriss laughed with mock offense at his implied insult, enjoying the conversation. "I am a healer. I'm concerned with everyone's welfare."

Trapper's eyes sparkled. "Of course. And, we are grateful for the exceptional attention you've given to the welfare of the commander." There was no malice or implication in his tone. He made the statement with a completely straight face.

Barriss flushed. Trapper's smile grew wider. He enjoyed making her blush. He was a natural with women, whether he realized his effect or not.

She cleared her throat, trying to maintain her composure. "Do you know where he is?"

Trapper straightened up in his chair. His battered helmet rested comfortably on top of one knee. He drummed his fingers against the top as he considered his response. "Hmmm... I believe I do." He took his time answering, before responding, obviously enjoying the conversation as much as Barriss. "He finished his shift and headed to his quarters."

Barriss nodded her thanks, and then turned away. Then, she realized she had no idea where Cody's quarters might be.

"The clone officer's wing." Trapper supplied helpfully.

Barriss nodded. She didn't know much about the layout of the ship. When she'd been shown to her rooms with Master Unduli, the troopers had described the rooms as "the nicest on the ship." She'd tried to protest the accommodations, not wanting nicer rooms than anyone else. The troopers had given her a confused look, telling her she'd have to take it up with Captain Ko or Commander Cody and left shortly afterwards. The only other person on board located near her was Ahsoka. It bothered her on some level the clones felt they needed to treat the Jedi differently and she felt isolated from everyone else onboard.

"Commander," Trapper's voice startled her. The clone had risen up and was standing beside her. "I can escort you there," his voice was polite and respectful, but held a hint of eagerness.

"Yes, that would be appreciated."

"Excellent," the 212th trooper said enthusiastically, clipping his helmet to his belt. "I was scheduled to bring food to the commander at 0600. Do you mind if we stop by the mess?"

Barriss shook her head. "Not at all. I'd like to see more of the ship." Troopers had been delivering meals to her since her arrival. She suspected Cody had seen to this small detail. Each time food arrived, she wondered if he'd been taking the time to eat. They walked along in companionable silence. She focused on memorizing the corridors, as she'd done when she'd memorized all of the junctions of the Geonosis hive. All of the corridors of the Kaz'harian ship were pale green and each one blended into the next. But, it was not any more challenging than figuring out the hive. She relaxed as she went along, easily able to keep a tally of her surroundings.

"How do you do it?" Barriss asked curiously, turning to her clone escort.

"Sir?"

"Keep track of these corridors. None of them are marked." Barriss had spent years training at the Temple in focus and memorization techniques.

"I'm an advanced recon force trooper. Like a scout, I naturally remember routes and maps."

Barriss looked thoughtful. "Can all clones do the same?"

Trapper laughed. "Ah… no. That's why the Army needs scouts." His laughter rang through the hallway, and she was enveloped in the richness of the sound. She felt warm inside and out for the first time since returning from Darkknell. "We've had to track down plenty of lost clones. We've found troopers in the oddest places. Did you know that in addition to the mess, the Kazzies had a formal dining hall? " He shook his head in wonder. "Amazing creatures." He grinned. "We decided we clones were worthy of some fanciness so _now_ we're using the fancy plates. No more durasteel for us." His chest straightened up with pride.

Barriss realized her meals _had_ been delivered to her room on the same dishware, but she hadn't taken note of the fact. The dishware used at the Temple was similar in design, so she had simply overlooked it.

"Ah, here we are. The main mess," Trapper announced.

Barriss blinked as they walked into the dining area. It was stunning. One entire wall was lined with glass looking out into space. Since they were in hyperspace, stars streaked by in a continuous blur. Troopers glanced over as the doors swished open and looked up from where they were dining on fine tableware.

"Commander on deck!" shouted the trooper nearest the door.

In one smooth move, all the troopers rose and stood at attention. Most troopers were dressed in pale green Kazzie fatigues. Some had cut their hair and were clean shaven again.

Trapper noticed her studying the clones. "Shave kits are in short supply. Those of us from Ord Cestus are the only ones who have them. A dozen kits for two legions isn't much. We're hoping to have everyone back to regulation by the time we reach Corrie." He leaned in toward her and whispered. "No one wants to meet their vode again looking like a Kowakian monkey."

Barriss tried to hold back an undignified snort of laughter, not sure if she entirely succeeded. She glanced over at Trapper and saw his eyes shining with mischief. He was a good one to have around Cody, and balance out his overly serious side. Friends like Trapper were essential and irreplaceable. She turned her attention back to the men in the room, amazed at the sheer number of clones they'd managed to rescue. Mixed in with clones dressed in improvised Kazzie fatigues, she spied the armored forms of Waxer, Boil, Jesse and Denal. As the troopers continued to stand rigidly at attention, Barriss grew uncomfortable. Her Master had put an end to such formalities in the 41st Elite, except during the rare occasions when senior Jedi came to visit. She looked over at Trapper.

"At ease," he mumbled under his breath.

"At ease," she said, then winced, wondering if her voice was even loud enough for the troopers to hear. But, the clones all immediately sat and resumed chatting and eating as if nothing had occurred.

"Thanks," she said quietly to Trapper, as she followed him toward a serving counter that was set too high, "we aren't that formal in the 41st Elite."

"Really?" the 212th trooper paused, and looked at her curiously, "I always pictured Commander Gree as being a total-" He caught himself, gave her his trademark grin as if caught saying something he shouldn't. She couldn't help but laugh again at his implied slight. Alright, yes, Gree _did_ sometimes have his moments. She noticed a few troopers looking over at them curiously. Trapper started again. "Going for the formalities."

Trapper started pointing, taking his time as he pointed out the various food offerings to her. He didn't seem to mind in the least that troopers were studying them curiously. "I don't recommend the red fruits. We don't know what they are but we call them Trooper's Revenge." He leaned in toward her ear and whispered quietly. "Kix's scans might've said they're edible, but they try to claw their way back out of your gut. Don't risk it." Barriss couldn't help but laugh again.

He nodded serenely as if speaking from experience, and then pointed to another fruit. "These purple wrinkly ones are good." He smiled at her again. "They're Cody's favorite." Barriss added two of the fruits to her plate. Trapper continued on and made a vague gesture toward the storage room at the far end of the galley. "We discovered massive quantities of dried meat, but Coric said our bodies lack the enzyme to break it down." He sighed. "We're stuck with only fruit until we reach Corrie." He shrugged. "We've eaten worse and gotten by."

Barriss was now lost in thought, thinking of Cody, and no longer paying attention to what she added to her plate. They headed back out of the galley and walked on down the green corridors.

"Commander," Trapper began, sounding a bit uncertain as if broaching an uncomfortable topic, "my brothers and I have talked and we're not going to say anything."

Barriss looked over at the clone in surprise. She wasn't sure how to respond.

Trapper continued on. "But… Cody…he talked to us, too. He told us about how Jedi aren't allowed to have... " his lips pursed as he searched for the proper word.

"Attachments," Barriss supplied, uncomfortable with the entire conversation

"Attachments," the trooper turned his gaze on the Jedi curiously, "I can't say I understand it. How do you turn off your feelings like that? Isn't it normal for everybody to have feelings? Why should you turn them all off?"

Barriss stopped abruptly in the corridor, and stared at Trapper.

"I'm sorry, Commander. I meant no offense."

"No. It's…" She balanced her plate in one hand, pressed the back of her knuckles into her eyes and tried to think of an appropriate response. She struggled to provide a reasonable explanation for Jedi philosophy, in the same way it had been explained to her in the Temple. "If we care too much for one person, we lose focus on the whole."

Trapper looked thoughtful, weighing over her words. He shook his head. "We clones have a concept where we chose a brother. One brother that is closer to us than any other. It doesn't stop us from working together effectively."

Barriss tried to refute Trapper's logic with the beliefs that had been installed in her since the creche. "Jedi are forbidden to hold strong attachments. It is believed these emotions will lead to the dark side."

Trapper considered her words and then shook his head. "I still don't understand."

"The Jedi Code establishes rules and behavior for all Jedi. The main tenets of the code have stayed the same for generations."

He pursed his lips thoughtfully. "So, it is tradition." They walked on in silence again before he spoke up again with the straightforward earnestness that was so characteristic of the troopers. "But, what if those traditions don't make sense?"

"It is the Jedi way," Barriss said, echoing the words which had been said to her time and again at the Temple whenever she started asking deeper questions on longheld beliefs. She eventually learned to stop asking questions. Now that she was the one saying the words, they felt bitter on her tongue. She felt like she was hiding behind the words rather than saying something that reflected her true beliefs. It felt _wrong_. She didn't like herself in that moment.

Trapper stared at her for a long moment, and she felt like the clone was seeing through her. The silence stretched on between them uncomfortably, before he gave a graceful shrug of an armored shoulder. "Alright. Commander. As you say."

He pointed out a door. "Commander Cody's quarters." Trapper handed her the extra plate, which Barriss carefully balanced against her own plate. "Be careful," the trooper warned.

"What?" Barriss startled.

"About what you eat," Trapper pointed to her plate and she noticed for the first time that in her distraction of thinking about Cody in the mess hall she'd accidentally taken some red fruit. "You don't want to eat those." He nodded respectfully before disappearing down the corridor.

Barriss took a deep breath and faced the door. Now that she was here, she wasn't sure why she had come.

_I should go_, she told herself, preparing to retreat. She stopped herself, unable to bring herself to leave. Before she could change her mind, Barriss rapped on the thick, heavy door. Her knuckles made an odd metallic sound as she knocked.

"Come."

Barriss took a step closer and the automatic door sensor activated, sliding the sturdy door backwards into the wall.

The room was only partially-lit, and as Barriss' eyes adjusted, she noted that Cody was reclining against pillows on an oversized bunk. His chest armor was off and his bodysuit was opened up. He had a large heat pack slung over one of his shoulders.

The clone commander sat up, his eyes widening in surprise. "I thought it was Trap." He immediately started shrugging back into his bodysuit. His eyes narrowed, and his voice was chilled, reminding her they hadn't parted on the best of terms. "What are you doing here?"

Barriss flushed furiously. "I…" She stood awkwardly, the oversized plates feeling heavy in her hands. She shook her head. "I shouldn't be here. I'm sorry." She spied an oversized desk. "I'll leave this and go." She hurried across the room. Her feet couldn't move fast enough.

"Barriss, wait." Cody rose, groaning as he moved too quickly.

She quickly set down the two plates, and studied him in the dim lighting. "What happened here?" Bruising extended across his chest into his shoulder. She briefly considered making the room brighter so she could study the injury better, but like Trapper, Cody's eyes were ringed with exhaustion. She pressed her fingers lightly against his chest.

Cody started at her light touch, and stared down at her fingers touching him. She felt a torrent of emotion coming off of him at the touch, before he closed himself off. Sadness. Anger. Longing. Regret.

"It's nothing," he mumbled, quickly, trying to pull away from her touch and shield his bare self from her view.

"Cody," Barriss admonished, the command clear in her tone.

He froze, lifting his head until his amber gaze met hers. There was a long pause before he finally answered. "I ended up in a one-on-one with a Kazzie. I was able to blast his club away, but he got angry and nearly ripped my arm off."

Barriss tapped down the image of Cody being dismembered. She forced herself to remain calm. "How were you able to get free?"

"_I_ got angry," Cody snorted. He held up his other hand and, with a schunk, ejected his vibroblade. It was still stained with dark Kaz'harian blood. "Sorry," he mumbled, and retracted it again. He sighed. "Haven't had a chance to properly clean all my kit. Been busy with Rex in bacta." He closed his eyes briefly and admitted. "I'm tired."

Barriss gave him a concerned look. He almost never admitted to such a thing. She focused back on Cody's shoulder, automatically going back into healer mode. "Have you seen a medic?"

"No time. Trap got me the heatpack. I said I'd stop by medbay after I slept some," he shrugged, then winced at the pull on his shoulder.

"Will you actually go?" Barriss studied Cody carefully.

"Maybe. To check on the injured men."

"Top half of the suit off." She ordered brusquely. 'Sit."

He stared at her for a long moment, before finally complying. She helped him shuck the rest of his upper body armor. Everytime she touched him, she felt him react. She slid behind Cody, sitting cross-legged and pushing the pillows onto the floor.

"What are you doing?" he asked, immediately tensing up as she moved behind him on the bed.

"I'm still your assigned healer," she slid off her shoes, and let them fall lightly to the floor.

Cody 'hmmmped' under his breath, but sounded resigned she was staying.

Barriss reached forward and lightly skimmed her hands over his injuries. She used her hands first to feel for injuries, and then she closed her eyes, and reached down into the Force. "Your shoulder is partially dislocated. I can heal it, but I'll need to work on the muscles around it first."

With a practiced gesture, she reached into the pouch on her belt and pulled out a compact container of medi-lotion.

Cody's nose wrinkled. He tried to look back over his shoulder, and winced. She pushed his head back forward. "Hold still," she admonished.

"I recognize that smell."

"You should," she rubbed a small amount on her hands, "it's a derivative of ryll and geldbitter salve. It has muscle relaxant and anti-inflammatory properties. This is what I used on you on Ord Cestus."

Under her fingertips, all of Cody's muscles bunched up at the mention of their time together on the medical station. "_Relax_ or I'm not going to be able to move your shoulder back. It's me or medbay."

Cody blew out an exasperated sigh, but his head naturally drooped as she began to work out knotted muscles. She closed her eyes, focusing intently on her healing. She searched out the fiery inflammation surrounding the battered tissues. She worked closer and closer to the damage around his shoulder. She gave a practiced tug and the joint slid back into position. Cody sucked in his breath sharply, but otherwise stayed quiet as Barriss worked. His eyes shut as she worked through spasm after spasm, healing damaged tissues.

"How's the pain?"

"Better," he admitted, then hissed lightly as her fingers hit another tender spot. She focused on the inflammation, working until the tissue was normal again. She felt Cody relax more under her fingertips. Cody half-turned so he was facing the Jedi. "Why are you here and not with the General?"

Barriss didn't answer. She wasn't sure herself. She decided to evade the question. "Your shoulder is doing better. But, when your arm was pulled, it caused a great deal of resulting tension in the muscles of your back. We need to work this out or your neck injury will be aggravated again. Lie down."

Cody studied her again for a long moment before complying. He laid out flat on the bed. She grabbed one of the pillows off the floor, sliding it under his neck to make him more comfortable. She started kneading deeply into the muscles of his back, and felt him relax more under her fingertips. His eyes naturally closed. Silence descended between them for several long minutes.

She studied Cody as she worked, and realized she could not escape the truth. She finally answered his question. "I am here because I could not stay away."

Cody's eyes snapped open. "Barriss," her name escaped his lips as a groan, pulled deep from within.

Barriss slipped the healing back into her belt. She skimmed her hand down his spine with the practiced touch of a lover. Cody felt the change in touch immediately. The hair on the back of Cody's neck and arms immediately stood up and he sucked in a breath.

"Fek," the clone commander growled out, his voice deep throated and husky. He rolled over and immediately took charge. He pushed the Jedi healer backwards. The bed felt stiff and hard, but made a delicious contrast of sensation to the perfectly muscular clone.

She knew all of the reasons why they shouldn't be doing this, but her entire being quivered with excitement as Cody's weight pressed down upon her. His lips began an onslaught of down the length of Barriss' neck.

"Cody, your leg armor," she said, as the plates dug painfully into her skin.

The 212th commander reached down and with admirable skill shucked the pieces in record time. Now, she could _feel _him through his skin-tight bodysuit. He growled into her ear, and pressed up against her, insistent and urgent.

"Need you," he said huskily, keeping up his barrage of kisses, up and down her neck. Before Barriss could respond, he thrust back the hood that held her hair in place. "Hate this fekkin' thing," he grumbled. With the barrier removed, he started on assault on the sensitive skin behind her ears. She shivered in response. "We belong together," Cody said, and stared into her eyes intently, he ground his hips hard against her emphasizing his point, "we fit together. Open your mouth to me."

She could not resist him.

# # #

Cody fell into a deep sleep after their hours of intense lovemaking, and she allowed herself the luxury of watching him sleep. She savored each second, memorizing every line and curve on his face all over again. Every second felt so final, like these moments would not come again. Every parsec brought them closer to Coruscant.

She rose as quietly as she could, careful not to disturb the exhausted clone. He looked peaceful in sleep. The stern expression finally eased from his face and was replaced with an innocence which made him look so much younger. She was struck with an intense sadness as she was reminded she was actually older than Cody. She continued to watch him sleep, studying him intently. His short-cropped hair had grown out during his time at Ord Cestus. It curled slightly now at the nape of his neck, and there was a single wisp of grey by his left ear. She sighed, knowing the years were slipping away from his life much too quickly. She wanted to stay like this forever, in this one moment, and ignore the rest of the universe. Pretend there was no war, no Jedi Order and Grand Army of the Republic. It was only the two of them in this moment in their safe little bubble.

Cody stirred slightly in his sleep, reaching out for her. She pulled back slightly out of his reach. His brow furrowed, but exhaustion pulled him back under and he slept on. She slowly backed further up. She had to leave.

Her body was sticky and sweaty and she desperately needed a shower.

But, if she showered here she would not be doing so alone.

She had to go. She took two steps toward the door, and stopped. She looked back toward the bed. Toward Cody. He was the most beautiful man alive.

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, knowing she was doing what she had to do. If she did not go now, she would never be able to leave. She had to be strong. If she stayed, she would destroy them both. She quietly slipped out the door, although she could barely see as she headed down the corridor. Her vision was blurred and she was not sure she was headed in the correct direction.

She startled at a sudden voice.

"Commander, I was headed back to your side of the ship. Would you like to walk together?"

Trapper seemed to materialize out of nowhere. He looked as if he still hadn't slept. The lines of exhaustion under his eyes were even deeper and he looked like he was fighting to stay awake on his feet. She stared at him for a long moment as her brain tried to catch up with his words. He waited patiently, his arms folded behind his back in parade rest. Finally, she nodded gratefully and the two walked together for several long awkward minutes.

Trapper broke the silence first.

"You didn't eat the red fruit, did you?" he said with his usual quiet polite humor.

Barriss was so lost in her thoughts, it took her a moment to even register that the 212th trooper had spoken. "What? No."

Trapper studied her thoughtfully for a long moment. "You must be hungry." He rummaged around in his belt pouch and withdrew a rations bar. "My last one. I've been saving it."

She stared at it blankly.

He shrugged, still holding out the bar. "They might taste like sand, but they don't claw their way outta' your gut like the Kazzie fruit."

Barriss accepted the precious bar with a grateful nod. "Thank you." The generous nature of the clones never failed to amaze her.

They passed a number of clones who looked at the two curiously. Trapper hit them all with a glare worthy of Cody. She noticed a number of them sniff the air as she passed, and then give them a startled look. She knew clones had heightened senses. But, what could they be smelling-

She figured it out just as they were passing a large group of recently freed clones headed the other way. They all turned toward her and Trapper at once, regarding the two of them with wide eyes.

"Eyes front, troopers!" Trapper snapped out.

They immediately complied, but after they rounded the corner her sensitive ears detected the low murmuring of clone voices. She picked up the words "Trapper" and "the commander."

She gasped.

"Are you alright, Commander?"

She looked over at the 212th trooper. Trapper's eyes were kind and compassionate. He stopped in the hallway, his helmet tucked neatly under his arm. It was well known how much clones loved to gossip. Within hours, every clone on the ship would be mouthing off about about Trapper.

And, none would be badmouthing Commander Cody.

"You're a good friend," she said, giving the 212th trooper a nod of respect.

"If you say so, Commander," Trapper said politely. He started walking again, staying by her side in companionable silence. A few minutes later, they arrived in front of her quarters. Trapper gave her a crisp nod and disappeared as quickly as he'd materialized.

Barriss blew out a sigh and headed into her quarters. She carefully placed the precious rations bar on the table near her oversized bunk, and went to check on her Master. At first, Barriss was afraid to get too close. Somehow afraid that even unconscious, the Jedi Master would know what she had been doing. But, there was no change. Her face remained peaceful and serene and it looked as if she would not awaken for some time.

Barriss headed to the refresher and stripped off her clothes. As hot water poured over her body, she tried to invigorate herself. She let the steam envelope her body, her thoughts cascading back to the hours spent with Cody.

She wanted to go back. She wanted to be with him again. She couldn't. She had to end this. What was she doing? But, she couldn't seem to stay away from Cody. She was drawn to him like fleek oil to flame. Would they destroy each other with how hotly they blazed together?

She tried to end it. Time and time again.

Everytime she did, she felt as if she was shattering inside.

She sank down to her knees, curled herself in a ball and wept. She had no idea how to handle any of these emotions.

# # #

"These are your quarters, Captain. Commander Cody is down there on the left. Captain Ko and Captain Leon are down on the right."

"Thanks, Fives," Rex said. "I can take it from here."

The ARC snorted. "Coric told me to make sure you hit your bunk and stay there."

Rex smiled and shook his head. He'd been in bacta for the past day. The wound on his chest was now a faint line. The cut in his neck was completely healed, and even his knee felt the best it had been since he'd been injured. He explored the room briefly, and then his nose wrinkled. "What's that smell?"

"That's Kazzie's fur," Fives said, "you can smell it throughout the ship, but it's strongest in the living quarters."

"Ah," Rex nodded. Right. It did seem discomfortingly familiar. He had a momentary flashback to being pinned against the chest of the Kazzie leader.

Fives' voice brought him back. "Do you need anything else, Captain? I'd like to get back and check on Echo." The ARC's voice had been steady the whole time he was speaking to Rex, but it wavered slightly when he started speaking of his badly injured brother.

"No. I'll be fine. How is Echo doing?" Rex had wanted to stay and make rounds visiting injured troopers in the medbay, but Coric had expressly forbidden it.

Fives' face was set into a grim mask. "He made it through the surgery. Kix isn't sure how long he'll be in bacta."

"Has Kix slept at all?"

"I don't think so."

Rex gave the ARC a critical look, taking in the deep shadows under his eyes. "Have you?"

Fives shook his head and ran an agitated hand through his thick black hair. ""I couldn't get my mind to shut down. I ended up walking the corridors. When I returned to my medbay, I tried to get Kix to take a rest."

"Of course he refused."

"He said he'd go after Coric."

"I'll speak with Cody. We'll have to make it an order."

"You're not supposed to be working."

"As ordered by my medics who refuse to rest themselves and an ARC who hasn't slept."

"Point well taken." Fives pointed to the bed. "Speaking of which, you're supposed to be resting."

"Not an issue. I'm almost asleep already," Rex assured him.

"You're sure you don't need anything else?" Fives asked.

"No. Go on, Fives. Get back to Echo." The ARC nodded and left.

Rex found himself so paralyzed by fatigue that he couldn't move. He stood in the center of the room looking around at the unfamiliar surroundings, his mind going over everything he needed to do before Coruscant. He could get a couple of hours of work done before he slept. He needed caf and a datapad. He looked around the room. He didn't have either one.

He didn't like this room. It was too big. It didn't feel like a room a clone should be living in. He continued to stand in the middle, feeling out of place. It was an unsettling feeling. A storage chest stood at the foot of the bunk. Acting on a hunch, he opened the chest and found his armor inside. The sight reassured him.

His armor had been cleaned of blood and grime, although there was still blast damage on the chest piece. His bodysuit had been replaced and was neatly folded underneath the armor. Rex stared at the new suit in wonder, running his hands over the seamless mesh. It must have been donated by one of the men from Ord Cestus. Rex had already begun to wear through his spare suit by his second month on Ando. It was a precious gift. He sighed, tempted to track down the owner of the suit and return it. It was almost too much to accept. He precisely folded the suit and put it back in the chest. He pulled out his helmet, also neatly polished and free of Darknellian grime. He slid it on and sighed with relief as he was back within the safe, familiar environment of his helmet. Everything about it _felt_ right. It even had the perfect smell to it. He breathed in and out deeply several times, just relaxing in the normalcy for a few seconds before getting back to work.

He commed Cody.

The 212th commander picked up the call, voice only. "Commander Cody."

"Fek Cody, did I wake you up?"

There was a snort. "Not exactly protocol, Rex."

Rex winced. Cody was right. Despite his earlier comments to Coric and Waxer, he needed to adjust his behavior and start acting and thinking like he was part of the GAR. He'd grown accustomed to a great deal of freedom in Ando. He'd run the Legion according to his own rules. He was only now beginning to appreciate how much he'd enjoyed doing everything his way. He mentally shook himself, and came back to the two pillars that held him together. Duty and responsibility. This was not about what he wanted. He had to do what was right.

Cody switched on the visual. He was shrugging into his bodysuit, although the material was sticking to him since he was still glistening wet. "I'm headed back on duty in a few minutes." He looked back into the viewscreen and gave Rex a curious once over. "I see you escaped medbay."

"Yes. That's what I wanted to discuss."

Cody finished tugging up his suit. "You want to go back?" There was a slight teasing tone in his voice. The visual shifted and Rex found himself staring up at Cody's face from the side as he efficiently shaved. He was surprised at this lighter side of the 212th commander. His friend had changed in the couple of months he'd been away. There was a mellower side balancing out his usual grim seriousness.

"No. According to Fives, Kix and Coric have been on duty since we left Darkknell."

"I see." Cody turned his head, and started shaving the other side of his face. "You'd like to order them to take a rest."

"Exactly. But, I can't. I'm officially not on duty."

"By those same medics."

"Yes."

"I'll take care of it. Anything else?" Cody brusquely combed his hair. He studied the finished result, patting an errant strand into place.

"No." Rex watched Cody with interest, wondering when the 212th commander became so fastidious about grooming. Or, so shabla cheerful.

He shook his head. Cody cut the connection, but before he did Rex thought he heard the 212th commander humming under his breath. Clone commanders did not hum. Fekkin' odd.

# # #

"Again, I expect Trapper, and I get you," Cody smiled at Barriss' unexpected appearance at his door. He was holding his shave kit in his hand. "Trap was supposed to come and pick this up. My allotted time is up." He shook his head. "You would not believe the schedule they have for this thing. I don't get to shave again for another full rotation."

"Cody. We need to talk."

He frowned at the serious tone in Barriss' voice and glanced up and down the corridor. It was empty. He ushered her into his room.

"Everything OK?"

Barriss shook her head.

"Did something happen with General Unduli?"

"No. Sorry. I'm usually much more direct. I-"

The clone commander's eyes narrowed suspiciously. "Fek. Barriss. Are you trying to break us up, again?"

"Cody, please, this cannot work. We cannot be together."

He crossed his arms and straightened up with confident male pride. "Last night, we had no problems being _together. _Many times, as I recall."

Barriss blushed. "You know that's not what I mean. All the Masters are currently unconscious. Everything will be different when we return to Coruscant."

His arms fell to his sides. "You're serious."

"We're headed back to Coruscant and everything will be different once we are there. I will likely be back at the Temple for a time with Master Unduli while she heals and we cannot be seen together-"

His eyes narrowed. "Are you _ashamed_ of me?"

"Cody, no!"

He stared at her defiantly, feeling anger replace the happiness that had carried him throughout the day.

"If we were caught, I would be expelled, and you…" her voice dropped off.

"I know what would happen to me!" Cody snapped. His eyes flashed angrily, "I'm already looking forward to their reaction to my recent bout of independent thinking."

Barriss reached forward to put a hand on his arm. "But, you saved so many lives."

"You didn't train on Kamino, Barriss." He shook his head as he tried to explain. "It's different for us. General Skywalker is hailed as a hero for his rebellious nature. We don't have the liberty to pick and choose which orders we obey." He sighed, and turned his back on her. He went over to the oversized foot locker by the bed and started tugging out armor pieces. "I knew the risks when I decided to go after General Kenobi. I must also protect the team that went with me."

She followed him over and watched as he efficiently dressed. "You mean to take the fall for the others?"

"Of course. I'm their commanding officer."

"No."

"No?"

"You can't."

He quirked up an eyebrow. He wasn't sure whether to be amused or annoyed. "Alright, Barriss, why can't I?"

"I'm ordering you not to it."

_She was trying to pull rank on him?_

He studied her another moment. Their gazes locked. "You're serious."

"There has to be another way."

He stared down at the deck for a moment and then resumed dressing. "There are going to be repercussions for what we did. Somebody will need to take the fall.

"Not you, Cody."

Cody inhaled sharply. If circumstances were different, he would be celebrating inwardly at her stalwart defense of him. "If not me, then who?" He frowned as his mind ran through all the possible scenarios. "Rex? Absolutely not."

"I will do it."

_Fek. Fek. Fek. She was pulling rank._

"Unacceptable," Cody stared her down angrily, shaking his head.

"You cannot do this."

He shook his head. He reached down and grabbed his helmet out of the bin. He had to put a barrier between them. He blocked his face from her view. "You're right. We cannot be together. You have your path. I have mine."

"Wait, Cody," she placed a hand on his arm.

He stared down at her hand, feeling panic seize his insides. He had to do something to protect her. He had to protect Rex. Protect the men under his command. His voice was filtered through his helmet. "You want to be free of me? _Go_. We're done." He tried not to see the hurt in her eyes as he ripped his arm from her grasp, and left the room.

# # #

_Author's Note: A long chapter, but there was a great deal of material to cover. I was listening to the song: "Let her go" and was struck by the line "Only know you love her when you let her go." _

_"Ando" will be launching soon and we are hoping to keep the timelines of the two stories roughly in sync. The men of Ando will be journeying home as Rex and Cody are headed back to Corrie. Month One for Rex and Cody will be Month One for Travis and Catcher. This will continue up until Order 66 when everything will reach the breaking point for all of our characters. We are coordinating two very complex stories between four writers located in three countries. It will take some trial and error to work through the logistics._


	3. Chapter 3 The Choices We Make

**Rex II**

**Chapter 3**

Trapper rounded the corner and pulled up short to avoid running headlong into Cody. The smile on his lips died as he took in his friend's rigid body language. Cody jammed the shave kit into Trapper's chest hard enough to push him back slightly, side-stepped around him and continued on.

"Hey!" Trapper objected at the unprovoked harsh treatment. He spun around and followed the 212th commander. "What the shab's gotten into you?"

Cody ignored him and headed toward the turbolift, his armored boots clicking against the deck with angry precision.

Trapper hurried to match his pace with the other clone. "I get it now. There's only one person that gets you this fired up."

"Leave it alone, Trap," Cody's voice was a menacing, warning growl. They headed into a lift large enough to fit two squads of clones.

The ARF trooper ignored the warning and continued to follow Cody. "No. I won't leave it. Why can't you two work it out? It's fekkin' obvious you two-"

"Not- another- word!" Cody shouted. He grabbed the other clone by his chest armor, and pinned him up against the side of the lift. As plastoid scraped up against durasteel, it made an unpleasant screech of protest. "This is not _up_ for discussion." Cody's voice was low and menacing. "Do I make myself clear?" The turbo lift stopped, and he released Trapper as they reached the bridge.

"Sir, yes, sir." The ARF Trooper said crisply, bitterness clear in his voice. He straightened out his chest plate, crisply adjusting the armor back into place. He glanced back over his shoulder at the scrape of camo paint on the lift wall. He shook his head. "I need to deliver this kit," he said, thickly. As Cody exited the lift, Trapper jammed the button to shut the doors and departed again. Before the lift doors opened again, Trapper had cleaned all evidence of the scrape away.

# # #

Cody stared at the datapad in his hand, realizing he hadn't registered anything he'd read in the past several minutes. He was _supposed_ to be reviewing shipwide status reports accumulated by Ko during the night shift. But, he was so fekkin' distracted he couldn't get past the first report.

_Distracted means dead._

It was one of the first lessons Alpha-17 had taught him during his specialized training on Kamino. Cody turned his attention back to the pad, trying to make sense of the words and turn them into action items for the current duty shifts. The lift doors swished open. Trapper walked immediately to his station without an acknowledging nod toward Cody. The ARF trooper relieved the the clone at the primary weapons station and set to work, turning his back on the 212th commander.

Cody blew out a long sigh. He knew his friend was angry with him. He could give it a few days. Try and let it blow over. Or, tuck his head between his sheb'se and apologize now for behaving like an di'kut.

"Trapper, briefing room," Cody ordered. He headed into the auxiliary room off the main bridge, without waiting to see if the other trooper followed. He'd used the briefing room a number of times already for working through operational logistics meetings. He stood in front of the perma-glass wall which dominated one wall of the room. A slight blur of white showed their continuous progress through hyperspace back toward Coruscant.

"You wanted to see me, _sir_?" Trapper stood just inside the doorway, body held rigidly at attention.

"At ease," Cody turned and waved one hand toward the dark, polished Kriin-wood table which dominated the center of the room. "Sit."

"I'd prefer to remain standing, _sir_."

Cody shook his head. Trapper only ever used his title around others.

_Or, when I'm behaving like a shabuir. _

After a long beat, the 212th commander removed his bucket and set it down on the table. It was a sign he wanted to talk more informally. The ARF trooper did the same, their helmets, at least sitting side-by-side.

"You know I'm not good with words so I'll come right out and say it," Cody began. "I was angry and I took it out on you. I was an di'kut. I'm sorry."

Trapper studied him a long moment until finally he nodded with satisfaction. "For someone who claims not to be good with words, you did alright." He pointed an accusing finger at Cody. "Don't do it again." He rubbed at his back and grimaced. "You're a strong son of a Jango." He cocked his head to the side, and regarded Cody curiously. "Exactly what happened that you had to throw me across the lift first thing in the morning?"

Cody shook his head. "I can't talk about it."

"But, it had to do with Commander Offee."

It was a statement, not a question. The fact Trapper was so certain of this information was unsettling.

"Trap, I can't discuss it. She is your superior officer. And, much as you like to constantly overlook it, I am as well."

The ARF trooper folded his arms across his chest. "Fine. I'll discuss it. _I_ showed her the way to your quarters last night."

Cody studied him with narrowed eyes. He wasn't sure if he should be grateful or angry with his friend.

"I also walked her _back_ to her quarters several hours later." Trapper continued.

The 212th commander took a deep breath. He had awoken alone after several very intense hours of lovemaking with Barriss. Then again, their physical time together was _always_ intense since they were both in peak condition and could push their bodies to do extraordinary things. He would often keep going to the edges of unconsciousness.

He'd woken up in a good mood, thinking maybe they could _somehow_ work things out. He didn't want to think through logistics or strategy for once. For the brief couple of minutes while he was showering and shaving, he fooled himself into thinking he deserved a bit of fekkin' happiness. Then, Barriss had come knocking on his door and reality had immediately come crashing down again. Even for those few minutes, he'd known it was all a shabla' bubble. There was no fekkin' way. Clones were born in vats and sent to battlefields to die. And, that's fekking it. There was no room for any other kind of life. He was such an di'kut for thinking anything else for even a few shabla' minutes.

_Fek. Trapper was talking._

The ARF trooper snapped his fingers in front of Cody's face.

"I said, she was very distracted on the way back to her quarters," the ARF trooper repeated, saying the words again louder. "Exactly like you are now." He shook his head. "Pretty fekkin' obvious something happened."

"Trapper-" Cody started.

"No, let me finish. We passed a number of troopers on the way back to her quarters. Many of them noticed there was something _different_ about the commander, as well."

Cody's eyes widened with alarm.

"We clones have such a keen sense of smell. After calibrating our decees, we always need a shower to wash off-"

"I _get_ it, Trapper," Cody hissed out. "Oh, fek." He ground a palm into his eyes. As if there wasn't already enough trouble waiting in Coruscant. He sank down into the nearest chair, his legs no longer feeling like they could support him. "This is exactly what we were trying to avoid. Why we can never… " He hadn't even realized he'd spoken outloud, until he felt Trapper's hand on his shoulder.

"It's handled."

Cody's eyes narrowed as he waited for Trapper to continue.

"They all think she was with me," the ARF trooper said. "I didn't do anything to dissuade them of the notion. I've already been to the mess hall and the gym this morning. Twice. Rumors are already circulating. The stories are getting better by the hour."

Cody leaned back in his chair, decided it was horribly uncomfortable due to the size of the chair, and sat forward again. He tried to work through this latest development. His brow furrowed and he shook his head. "But, Barriss… Commander Offee… If word reaches the Jedi Council… and you…"

Trapper shrugged. "She can deny everything. She barely knows me. We hardly had any contact at Ord Cestus. It will easily be shown to be no more than idle clone gossip."

Cody blew out a sigh, thinking it through. He stared out the perma-glass window, thinking it through. "I don't know what to say."

"Just watching your back, like I always do," Trapper grinned.

"And, I threw your back into a wall."

"You did."

"I owe you."

"You do."

Cody nodded thoughtfully.

Trapper shrugged and flipped on a large holochart. "What do you say I gather up Ko and the bridge crew and we have another one of your endlessly boring strategy and review meetings?"

"You have such a way with words."

"I can send one of those eager shinies from the five oh first out to get us some of that evil sludge that passes for Kazzie caf."

"Not sure there is anything shinie about them anymore after several months in a Kazzie prison," Cody observed.

Trapper scoffed. "They're still shiny in my book. That relegates them to caf duty."

Cody managed a slight laugh. "Noticed you're not making the 212th troopers do it."

The ARF trooper laughed. "More fun to make the boys in blue do it."

The 212th commander shook his head. "Wait until Rex gets back on duty."

Trapper shrugged. "We have one more day to have a little fun. Shall we take a look at the duty roster and see what we can do with the boys in blue today?"

Cody grabbed his helmet off the table and slid it back on. Trapper did the same, disappearing out the door to gather up the necessary members for the S&R meeting. Cody glanced at the holochart, before grabbing his datapad off his belt to start on the overnight status reports again. The raw aching and bitterness was still there, but he felt he could just make it through today.

# # #

Rex stripped out of the Kazzie fatigues he'd been given in medbay. They were several sizes too big, and held on with an improvised belt. But, the camo fatigues, in several shades of the Kazzie green, were surprisingly comfortable. He folded them with perfect precision, set them aside, and walked naked across the room and into the attached refresher. He was grateful the recently free Legions had something to wear other than the rags they'd been dressed in when they came onboard.

Coric had refused to give him more than a cursory report on the condition of the men before he'd left medbay, insisting he needed to be resting and not working. But, he did to put Rex's mind at ease and say the men were all recovering well, especially considering the conditions they'd been under during their captivity. Coric himself still looked gaunt and exhausted. The medic had showered and shaved, but his hair was still long enough to curl down to the nape of his neck. And, the moment Rex started asking follow-up questions about the men, he was kicked out of medbay and sent to his quarters.

He sighed, and studied the controls in the shower. The Kazzie alphabet was nothing like Aurebesh. If he chose the wrong setting, he'd scald himself.

_Fek. He made it through the Battle of Darkknell, and now he is defeated by the Kazzie shower._

He was about to comm Leon for translation assistance when he noticed the flimsi next to the sink. A meticulous diagram on using the Kazzie shower, and everything else in the room had been printed out in perfect clone writing. He chuckled as he noticed some of the details in the diagrams, including pictures of Kazzies doing questionable things with various items in the room.

_Fives._

He double-checked the diagram again, and set the controls for the shower. He owed the ARC. He stepped back while he waited for the water to adjust and carefully redirected the nozzles. Unusual creatures, the Kazzies. Why would they want a nozzle pointed at... He shook his head, and decided it was better if he left some mysteries unsolved.

He closed his eyes as the water ran over him and felt all his muscles relax. He sagged forward and pressed his forehead against the tile. Staying awake in the bacta was starting to take its toll on his body. The few hours of rest he'd gotten under sedative-induced sleep hadn't been nearly enough. It had been such a long couple of days…

He awoke long after the water had grown cold. Someone was knocking at the door.

"Come," he called out, his voice still raspy from the bacta. "Coric, I'm sorry I had to pull you off-duty-"

"It's me, Rex."

"Ahsoka," her name came out as a hoarse whisper. He finally recovered himself, and managed to state the obvious. "I'm in the shower." He felt his previously loosened muscles tense up.

He heard a laugh come from the other side of the doorway. The one with no actual door. "Yes. I'm a Jedi. I figured that one out." There was a short pause. "Do you want me to leave?" Her voice suggested she did not want to go.

He hesitated. He needed to talk with her and in another day he'd be back on duty. Yes, fek, she should go. No.

"Rex?" Ahsoka prompted.

"Stay. I'll be out shortly. Stay out there."

Ahsoka laughed. "I wasn't planning on coming in." As soon as she said the words, a heavy and uncomfortable silence fell between them.

Rex shut off the water and the silence deepened.

"Fek." Rex hadn't even realized he'd said the word out loud until Ahsoka responded.

"Are you alright?"

He blew out an exasperated sigh. "Kazzies don't use towels, do they?"

"Not that we've been able to figure out. There's been a shipwide debate on the matter."

"Glad it's not just me," Rex grumbled.

A moment later, a hand reached around the door, holding up his bodysuit. "You want this, or those snazzy Kazzie pants?"

"This is fine, thank you." He accepted the suit, and quickly shrugged into the lower half, feeling it pull against his wet skin. He walked out, water still beading down off of him.

The Jedi padawan was staring at him curiously. He flushed self-consciously, noticing her intense scrutiny. He dragged a hand along his grizzled chin. "I'm sorry. I haven't had a chance to shave. My kit is loaned out."

"No," her mortals deepened in color, and she swallowed, "it's… uh… good."

He wasn't sure what to make of her reaction, and still felt completely out-of-regulation. He scrubbed a hand through his scalp which was also longer than normal. She stepped closer and her hand followed his through his scalp. He couldn't suppress a shiver. He immediately stepped back and decided it would be safer if he put some distance between them. She always had been fascinated by his hair. She'd teasingly run her hand through his hair many times before, but now... he couldn't take it now.

Her gaze dropped to his chest as she studied the faint evidence of the blaster wound. "How are you feeling?"

_Hot. Nervous. Confused. Frightened._

He blew out a breath, stalling for time. "Fine." Ahsoka raised up a skeptical eyebrow at him, obviously not believing that particular answer. He tried again. "Groggy. Stiff. The usual way you feel coming out of bacta." He looked down at his hands for a moment, and knew the time for small talk was done. He took a deep breath, and decided the sooner they got this over with the better. It wasn't going to be any less painful for putting it off. "Ahsoka, we-"

"Rex, I-"

They both stopped, looking at each other awkwardly.

"Do you want to sit?" Rex finally asked. He looked around. There was no place to sit but the bed.

_Huge strategic miscalculation, Rex. For creatures that like huge rooms, the Kazzies have a surprising lack of furniture. What the fek do they do with all this space anyway?_

He tucked _that_ mystery away, and forced himself to focus.

Ahsoka hesitated, looking around the room, and then finally sat down on the edge of the bed. "It's been a long time since we've had a chance to talk. Not since you shipped out to ArmyMed."

Rex closed his eyes for a moment, composing himself. He opened his eyes and looked at Ahsoka again. "So much changed for me after I was sent there."

The Jedi padawan regarded him curiously, thinking about his words. "Did it?"

"What do you mean?"

"Did it change how you feel about me?"

Rex locked his hands behind his back, legs slightly spread apart, in perfect military poise. He took a long time to consider her words. He blew out a deep, shuddering breath. He chose his words carefully. "My feelings have not changed since Christophsis."

Ahsoka's eyes widened. "What do you feel?"

The five oh first Captain thought for a long time. He struggled with words he was never trained to express. "I carry a part of you inside of me."

Her eyes started to swim with tears and he looked into her brilliant blue eyes.

He continued. "Our ship crashed on the way to Kamino. All I could think of in those final moments was _you_." He paused again, wanting to get this right. "But, that doesn't change who we are. _What_ we are."

The tears in Ahsoka's eyes rolled down her cheeks.

"You know we can't be together, and that is why you came here tonight," Rex said the final words, and knew they were the right words, but each one was more painful than anything that happened to him at Darkknell or TriLuna.

She stood up, and placed a hand on his chest, softly stroking the faint scar left by the blaster mark from the Kaz'harian leader. Rex shivered and closed his eyes.

"One night," Ahsoka said softly, her lips followed the path of her hand.

Rex shuddered and he groaned. _One night_. Surely he _deserved_ one night. _They_ deserved one night. His eyes shot open and he pulled back. "No."

"_One_ night," Ahsoka's eyes were pleading, "it is all we will ever have. With the war-"

"No," his voice was a pained gasp. He took another step back and put up a hand stopping her from coming any closer. "Don't make this any harder, Ahsoka. If I spend the night with you, I won't…"

_I won't ever be able to let you go._

He stepped back further. He had to turn his back on her. He saw his armor. He grabbed the pieces, and started yanking them on, dressing in record time. "I'll walk you back to your quarters." He wasn't sure if his voice sounded normal, but he had to say something. He felt safer once he was back in his armor. He left his helmet off, as tempting as it was to pull it on, but he avoided making eye contact with Ahsoka for the entire walk through the corridors and she didn't attempt to speak with him. He could still feel the imprint of her hand on his chest. It was likely branded there permanently. She disappeared into her quarters silently. The doors swished shut and he was left alone standing in the corridor.

Losing the Andoan Legion was difficult enough, but this felt like it was tearing him up from the inside out. He wasn't sure how much more he could take. And, he had yet to face the GAR in Coruscant.

# # #


	4. Chapter 4 Strategic Planning

**Rex II**

**Chapter Four**

Cody studied Rex over his cup of caf. They were alone in the briefing room and Cody was enjoying the rare moment of quiet.

He took another sip of caf. Fekkin' awful stuff. No wonder the Kazzie leader had been so foul tempered.

_If I had to drink this rot on a regular basis, __I'd have the temperament of an enraged gundark, too._

But, he drank it anyway because he needed the caffeine. He'd barely slept, with the only few solid hours of sleep in the past week having come the night Barriss had visited. And, he hadn't so much _fallen_ asleep as passed out as always happened when he was pleasuring the Mirialan. He never stopped until they were both-

He scowled and gulped down the rest of his caf. It burned his throat, but it was better than thinking about Barriss. He turned back to studying Rex, who had his full attention on the briefing materials. For somebody who had just returned to duty, the five oh first captain looked like he hadn't rested. His eyes were darkly shadowed, and tight lines of tension were drawn around his mouth.

Rex had arrived into the briefing room early, but had settled into a chair without even a mumbled 'good morning.' He was also reading everything without commenting, and he always had feedback.

Something was going on.

Cody's thoughts drifted back to the moment Commander Tano charged into the dungeons and beheaded the Kazzie leader.

He studied Rex with narrowed eyes.

_ It seems we have something in common. Judging by the fact he looks as fekkin' awful as I do, looks like it worked out about the same for him. _

Cody refilled both of their caf cups using the carafe on the table. Rex looked up for the first time and gave a nod of thanks. Cody nodded back, and Rex returned to his reading.

_Wonder who ended it on his end. Did he have the courage to walk away on his own? Did Commander Tano choose the Jedi Order over him? _

He was curious, but he would never fekkin' ask. He was trained to discuss battle tactics and strategies, but this… Cody frowned again. Clones didn't talk about such things.

He scowled fiercely and polished off his second cup of caf. He sighed. The taste wasn't getting any better.

He'd given the other clone enough time for review. A clone could read 2025 words a minute and he'd already given Rex an extra fifteen seconds. Cody cleared his throat and flipped on the holochart over the table.

Rex looked up and focused his attention on Cody. He set down the ref 'pad, leaned back in the oversized Kazzie chair, and settled his hands around his mug.

"When we drop out of hyperspace, we will need authorization and command codes. We are flying in an enemy battle cruiser and can assume we will come under immediate attack." Cody pointed into the chart, showing a simulation of their enormous ship confronting several Jedi cruisers. "If the Fifth Fleet has been reassigned to another battalion, we may even come under attack by our own former ships. We have to be prepared for any possibility."

He punched up another screen, and a holographic projection of numbers appeared.

"We can assume all of your command codes and mine are useless. Yours would've been deactivated when you were decommissioned." He noticed Rex's hand clenching tightly around his mug at the mention of his dismissal. He ignored it and continued on. "Mine would have been shut down the moment I went AWOL. So, where does that leave us?"

He thought he heard Rex grumble _'fekked'_ under his breath. However, at Cody's raised eyebrow, the five oh first Captain cocked his head to the side, straightened up and appeared to give the question proper consideration. Rex stared into the holochart, deep in thought.

Cody decided to let the muttering go. He'd get Rex back to protocol before they reached Coruscant.

"We need other options," Cody said, hands behind his back, as he walked over to the plexi-glass wall, looking out into hyperspace. In the reflection of the glass, he could see his vod was still lost in thought. Something about the dark, polished Kriin-wood table seemed to have captured Rex's attention. He was tapping the table thoughtfully. He could tell Rex was already onto an idea. He'd seen that look with his vod before. Rex unclipped his datapad from his belt, and set it down on the table. He started typing notes with one hand, while grabbing a stack of nearby flimsi with another. Cody smiled with satisfaction. He considered getting some more caf while he waited for Rex to finish, but his stomach rebelled against the thought of any more of the harsh brew.

He left Rex to his thoughts. The five oh first captain was notoriously creative. He took out his own datapad, and started approving status reports and answering questions from the department heads around the ship. An hour later, Cody looked up and checked on Rex. The Captain was now surrounded by a stack of carefully sketched drawings and diagrams.

"You eaten?" he asked Rex.

It took the other clone a moment to even register the question. Rex looked up and shook his head. Cody hadn't taken the time to grab breakfast either. His mind had been too focused on other things.

"I'll have Trapper send one of the shinies out on a food run."

Rex ignored him, still focused on his work. Cody privately commed Trapper, who was only too happy to delegate the task to the nearest five oh first trooper.

"Wait. Shinies?" Rex questioned, finally looking up.

Cody made a vague gesture toward the bridge with one hand. "Trapper is helping break in some rookies. He's always been good that way." He quickly changed the subject. "So, what do you have for me?"

Rex didn't answer the question directly. He took a deep breath and studied his drawings critically. "I'm not sure this will work. The Kazzies might not even have the technology. But, judging by all the effort they put into building other parts of the ship, it reminds me of the pirate raider..." He tapped the wooden table again.

Cody stared at him, frowning, wondering what tables and pirates had to do with the fact the Fifth Fleet might be blowing their shebs into pieces in a few days. "I don't follow."

Rex held up an incredibly complex vector diagram.

Cody's eyes widened. "Is that what I think it is?"

"I'm going to need Leon for language assist to interface with the ship, and every engineer onboard."

# # #

Rex didn't expect to run into Coric on the way back to his quarters. He almost considered avoiding the medic, because he knew he looked as exhausted as he felt. But, then he noticed the medic was stumbling on his feet and looked worse than he did.

"Coric? You alright?"

"Rex?" the medic blinked.

"Where are you headed?"

"My quarters."

"Good choice," Rex slipped an arm under his shoulders. "Which way?" The medic still felt perilously thin and there was bone in places where there should have been thickly corded muscle.

Coric pointed.

"Have you slept? I ordered-" He stopped and caught himself. "Cody ordered you off-duty."

"Wasn't fooled." He sighed. "I went off-duty. But, I couldn't sleep. Just completed my on-duty shift again."

"Fek, Coric."

"I'm tired," the medic admitted.

"And, you complain about _me_," Rex sighed.

"These are my quarters," Coric pointed out a doorway, in a long corridor of identical doors. "Thanks. I'll-"

Rex activated the door and the lights automatically came on. "Which bunk is yours?" It was a standard six bunk room, with four of them showing signs of having been used at some point.

"I'm here," Coric pointed to the middle set of bunks. "Kix is above me. Chopper is over there. Fives is there. He insisted we leave the bottom bunk for Echo, in case he gets out of bacta before Corrie."

"You think he will?" Rex asked.

"Hard to say. He was in rough shape when we found him. The delay in finding him…" Coric yawned.

He eased Coric down on the bunk. "Arms up." He quickly undressed the medic, peeling him out of the oversized Kazzie fatigues. He carefully avoided reacting at the sight of his vod's prominent ribs.

"I can't believe my Captain is tucking me into my bunk," Coric grumbled, but then groaned with fatigue as Rex pushed him back onto his pillow.

With the practiced ease of having done the move before, Rex flipped up the blankets with one hand and pushed Coric underneath with the other. "Don't get used to it," Rex admonished lightly. He neatly folded the fatigues, and set them into the footlocker. "I won't do this for just anyone."

The medic gave a tired snort of disbelief, since they both knew it was a fekkin' lie. Rex had a reputation for watching out for everyone under his charge. Coric yawned again, settling in comfortably against the too large pillow. "You know, if I still had my armor, I'd ask you to clean that, too."

"Don't push it, Coric," he said, gruffly, but his actions belied his tone. He tightened the sheets on either side around the exhausted clone. "You need anything else? I can get you a plate from the mess."

He yawned again hugely, obviously struggling to keep his eyes open. "Wait. You'd really get me food?"

Rex sighed. "Yes, you hungry?"

"Nope. Not at all."

"You sure? You might get hungry later-"

Coric chuckled. "I'm fine, but I appreciate you fussin' like a nuna hen."

"Di'kut," Rex shook his head, a smile tugging at his lips. He turned to leave.

"Rex?"

The five oh first captain paused by the door, not turning around.

"I'm sorry about before," the senior medic said, his voice quiet, "in medbay. Whatever is between you and Commander Tano… it's none of my business."

Rex took a deep breath, still not facing Coric. He paused for a long time before speaking. "She saved my life on TriLuna. Anything we might have had-" He shook his head and turned to leave again.

"Rex."

"Coric, you should be sleeping."

"The last bunk is open."

Rex stopped. He pivoted halfway around and looked at the empty bunk.

He hadn't been able to sleep in the enormous Kazzie room. He always bunked with the men.

Last night, in that huge Kazzie room, he felt _alone_. He was dreading another night there.

"Chopper is on the top bunk," Coric said, unable to suppress another yawn. "Offer still stands if you want to clean my armor. " He rolled over onto his side, and was out.

Rex stripped out of his armor, stashing it into the chest at the foot of the spare bunk. Fatigue was rapidly dragging him down. He heard the quiet, steady sound of Coric's breathing and in seconds he was out. Hours later, he woke up to hear the rapidfire whispering of clones trying to be quiet and failing miserably.

"Took him long enough. I expected him here last night."

"Shhh... they both look tired."

"Trust me. He's not asleep."

"Fives," Rex greeted, without bothering to open his eyes.

"You enjoy my Kazzie drawings?" the ARC drawled out.

"They were anatomically intimidating."

Fives' laughter rang out. Rex had almost drifted off back to sleep, listening to the reassuring sound of armor plates being shed and stowed. But, he felt two fingers lightly touch his bare shoulder.

"Glad you're here," Chopper quickly said, and before Rex could respond, the other clone had disappeared into the top bunk.

Rex puzzled over the unusual display of affection from Chopper, and wondered if he'd meant more than just bunking back with them again.

"Yeah," Fives echoed in the dark room, "welcome back, Rex."

# # #


	5. Chapter 5 Cloak and Dagger

**Rex**

**Chapter Five**

"Wake up, vod."

Echo felt sedatives pulling heavily at him. He immediately attempted to say: 'Fek off' but it came out as barely coherent 'Foff.'

He heard an amused chuckle. "Echo, open your eyes."

He resisted, keeping his eyes tightly squeezed shut.

"Come on, vod. You're getting lazy. Giving us ARCs a bad name."

He sighed, and struggled against the haze dragging him down. "Fives?"

"Yeah, vod. You're out of the tank."

Echo blinked several times against a light that was too harsh. He was finally able to focus on Fives. He frowned, studying his brother critically for a long moment. "Tired." Ouch. It hurt to talk. He licked his lips. They were too dry. Gah. Even his tongue felt like it had no moisture.

Fives nodded. "I'm sure you're tired. You've been in the tank for almost five days, and Kix had you in emergency surgery for-"

Echo put a hand forestalling any more explanation. His limbs felt heavy and it was hard to move. He wasn't particularly interested in the details. It was enough he was alive. "Not me." He coughed. Gah. His throat was burning. "You."

His vod laughed, the sound one of relief and amusement. "It's because I've been here, di'kut, waiting for you to wake up."

Echo tried to lift his head, but it weighed about four hundred kilo so he gave up. He settled for looking around from where he was lying flat on his back. The place didn't look right, and it definitely smelled _wrong_. "Where?" Even getting the one word out was an effort.

"On a Kazzie ship. We made it off Darkknell. Kix said if you can keep water down, we can head back to our quarters."

Water? OK, that sounded fekkin' glorious. He didn't particularly care about the sleeping arrangements. However, Fives seemed enthusiastic about the whole thing so he tried to muster up some enthusiasm. "Sounds... good." Speaking made him cough again. His throat had never been this dry before. Ever.

He watched as Fives disappeared somewhere into the not-normal medbay. The place was too big. And, the walls were the wrong color. He'd woken up in the land of giants.

Ah. Right. He was assaulted with the memory of taking on the enormous simians. Kazzies.

Fives returned and offered a welcome distraction from the battle memories. Echo eagerly opened his mouth as his brother offered him water. The liquid had a slightly fruity taste, but he didn't care. He would have eagerly sucked down hyperdrive fluid. He sighed with relief. Feeling slightly revived, he tried to piece together his last coherent memories. "The gas? Everyone OK?" Speaking that many words at once made him cough again.

Fives patiently offered him another small sip of water. "You saved our shebs when you shut off the cryseefa, vod. We'd be dead if it wasn't for you." He jerked a thumb backwards. "A few troopers... they... uh... still sucked in some lungfuls of the stuff." His face twisted up, and he looked trouble for a moment. "Some worse than others. But, most of what we're dealing with here is normal battle stuff." At Echo's nod, he offered him another small sip of water then continued on with his explanation. He gave a general wave around the medbay. "The ship is fully equipped with bacta tanks. You've been in one for days." He pointed to a curtained off section of the medbay. "Generals Skywalker and Kenobi are over there. Kix is checking on them now. The Jedi Generals are all still down for the count. I mean _all_ of them."

"Who's in charge, then? Appo? Tano? Offee?" Echo frowned, thinking through the command logistics.

Fives jerked a thumb toward a medbay bunk nearby. "Appo is out, too." His voice dropped slightly with a low note of sympathy. "He had the shebs beaten out of him by a Kazzie. And, he wasn't doing too good before then. Had a tough time of it in the dungeons from what I hear. Going to take him some time to recover." He ticked off his fingers. "Commander Offee is with General Unduli. Not sure what is going on with Commander Tano." He cocked his head to the side in puzzlement. "She's locked herself in her quarters. She comes down here once in a while to check on the Generals, but that's about it. Maybe she's meditating or something. You know Jedi." He shrugged, as if the statement explained everything. "So, it's been Rex, Cody and Ko running the ship."

Echo nodded with approval. He had nothing against Jedi. Not really. But, he'd seen less screw-ups with clones than with Jedi. Whether it was better training, better genetics, or Jedi being caught in a war where they didn't belong, he didn't know. However, he was confident clones being in a charge was a good turn of events.

Content for the moment with the update he'd gotten from Fives, he stretched experimentally, looking down at his bare left shoulder. Last time he'd seen it, a Kazzie spear had been impaled straight through him. Now, there was a red puckered scar, clearly showing the impressive size of the shaft that had nicked his lung. He reached his right hand up and traced the outline of the scar, remembering the fierce stabbing pain. He looked up and noticed Fives watching him intensely.

"That was too close, vod," Fives said, quietly. "Kix was barely able to bring you back."

Echo pushed away the memories of his time at Darkknell. Ignoring the stiffness in his limbs, he clasped Fives arm in the traditional Mando'a handshake. His fellow ARC tolerated the gesture for only a moment, before releasing and pulling him bare chest to armor in a brotherly embrace.

"Don't fekkin' do that to me again," he whispered fiercely to Echo, the strain and toll of the past few days evident in his voice.

Echo rested against Fives and closed his eyes, enjoying the brief moment of affection.

Kix was standing behind Fives' shoulder watching with a look of amusement. "Always knew there was something funny about you two."

Echo laughed, not bothered by the teasing from the medic.

"I need to check your vitals, and then you can go," Kix said.

Echo patiently sat through the exam, trying not to wince as the medic probed at the wound on his shoulder and the one across his abdomen. Both were tender, but nothing like before.

Kix drew himself up and Echo knew this was when he'd get the full on medic-in-charge lecture. He tried hard not to roll-his-eyes and look like he was paying attention. "You may go, Echo, _however, _you are off-duty and confined to quarters. I am only releasing you because I am sick of Fives hanging out in my medbay at all hours. You are to rest and stay in your bunk, except for using the refresher, until you are medically cleared otherwise. Understood?"

_Blah. Blah. Blah._

Nod your head.

_Say, yes, Kix_.

But, he didn't say anything because he yawned hugely instead. Kix raised up an eyebrow.

Echo shrugged. "I'm already so tired. I'm going to hit my bunk and stay there."

The medic nodded satisfied and started to walk away. He stopped and turned back. He indicated Fives. "You might not listen to me, but I know this one will fuss over you more than I ever could anyway." Having gotten the last word in anyway he walked away and turned back toward his other patients.

Echo grimaced. Kix was right.

"Slowly," Fives said as they made their way through the pale green corridors, "that's it. Take it slow."

Echo turned toward his brother. "If I go any slower, we'll be moving _backwards_. Come on, Fives. I'd like to make it to our room before we dock in Corrie." He meant it as a teasing jest, but he felt the slight ripple of tension go through his brother. Echo frowned. "What's going on?"

"Nothing you need to worry about. You're off duty."

"_Fives."_

"We've got teams working on the problem," Fives snorted. "The entire Combat Engineer Battalion from the 501st. Trust me, they're _working_ on it. You just need to rest, alright?"

Echo just frowned all the more severely. He was _not_ going to sleep. No fekkin' way. His mind raced through all the possibilities as they made their way— much too slowly— back to their quarters. Gah. What kind of problem required the attention of the entire Engineer Battalion? Kriff. That was a lot of engineers.

# # #

"I have to head on-duty for my shift. You sure you're good?"

Echo rolled his eyes. Kix was right. Having Fives hover over him was worse than any medic. And, then Fives had told him both Kix and Coric were rooming with them. Gah. He wouldn't be able to get away with _anything_. It was like they had planned the whole fekkin' thing. "Will you just get out of here? I'm not hungry. I'm not thirsty and I don't need to hit the head. I'll be fine. _Go_."

The ARC nodded and still looked unconvinced. "Alright." He grabbed his bucket off his bunk. "You'll comm me if you need anything?" He glanced at his chrono. "Chopper is coming off his shift in a quarter rotation, so you won't be alone too long. And, then Rex another quarter rotation after that-"

"We've been through this all already," Echo pointed imperiously to the door, "out!" He blew out a sigh of relief once his vod left and he had the room to himself. He wondered if he was that overbearing when Fives was injured. It wasn't possible, was it?

He settled into his pillow, yawning again. These Kazzies bunks were curiously comfortable. The bunk itself was oversized and the firmness of the mattress should have made it uncomfortably hard, but somehow it felt soothing as it cradled his tender muscles. He wanted to scavenge the room for a datapad. Maybe he could figure out the mystery project Fives wouldn't tell him about. He felt his eyes dragging shut on their own and knew he still sedatives lingering in his system.

_I__'__ll just close my eyes for a moment and then see about finding a datapad._

# # #

He awoke hours later and heard foot steps crossing the room. He immediately recognized the quiet tread.

"Chopper," he murmured, yawning and opening his eyes a crack.

"Hey Echo," the other trooper paused by his bunk, "I didn't mean to wake you."

The ARC pushed up onto one elbow, careful to avoid putting pressure on his recently healed wounds. His lips quirked with amusement. If Chopper had wanted to sneak by, Echo wouldn't have heard him. The scarred trooper had the impressive light-footedness of an ARC. However, he was willing to play along. "It's alright. I was just waking up anyway." Something was going on, and now his curiosity was piqued. Chopper wouldn't have woken him up without good reason. He pointed to the datapad Chopper held in one hand, a complex diagram clearly visible on the screen. "What do you have there?"

"Ah, well, I don't know, Echo. You're off-duty."

"You wouldn't have brought it if you didn't want me to take a look at it." Echo carefully scooted into a sitting position, leaning back against the wall. He patted the space next to him. "Give it over."

The scarred trooper removed his boots, neatly stacking them side-by-side under the bunk, before sliding next to Echo. "The engineers are completely stuck. The Captain asked me to assist. He said I was known for my 'out of the box thinking.' They're having an issue with the phase power converters. It's going unstable on them and they can't figure out why. But, I haven't been able to solve it either." His brown eyes widened hopefully. "You're the only other person I know who thinks like I do."

"Kix told me I wasn't to leave my bunk," he accepted the datapad with a huge grin, nudging Chopper playfully. "I'm on my bunk." He stared down at the diagram and his eyes widened. "Oh fek, Chopper, is that what I think it is?"

The scarred trooper nodded. "It is. Captain's idea. Think you can get it to work?"

# # #

Rex scratched tiredly at the back of his neck as he walked toward his quarters. He was aware that he was dragging his feet. But, he couldn't seem to find the energy to lift his legs properly. It was the middle of the fekkin' night, and there was no one around. So, what did it matter if he was adding yet more scuffs to his armored boots because his muscles were too sluggish to move properly? They were just two days out from Coruscant, and one of the many things on his huge shabla list of worries was ensuring they didn't get their shebs blown up the moment they dropped out of hyperspace. He _had _a plan, but the engineers couldn't seem to adapt the Kazzie technology to make it work. He blew out a sigh. Had he rescued all of these men just so they could die when they were so close to finally getting home?

He jammed the access control to get into his room, and immediately noticed the lights were on. It was late and he would've thought the others would be asleep-

_Whoa._

It took his brain a moment to register the voices and laughter from just inside the room. Rex pulled up short to avoid stepping on Trooper Zinc sitting just inside the door.

"Excuse me, Captain," Zinc said, sliding slightly to the side.

Rex stepped in and the door swished shut behind him. But, he couldn't take another step. The room was completely packed. Every available floorspace was covered. With troopers.

His brow furrowed as he took in the scene. They all looked to him as one and conversation ceased. He felt the shift in mood as the troopers took note of his presence. He could _feel_ the collective gears working in their minds, and knew in the next second they'd be jumping to their feet and saluting. He snapped up a hand to stay the movement. "At ease."

He looked around the room and immediately spied the two instigators. "Chopper, _Echo_." He nodded his chin briefly to welcome the ARC back. "You two want to explain what is going on here?"

Echo grinned and held up a datapad. "A cloaking device? Captain, I'm impressed."

Rex sighed. "Don't be. We can't seem to be able to get it work."

Zinc held up his own datapad and handed it over to Rex. "That's not true, Captain. Echo figured out the problem with the phase converters. See? We had to adjust the differential mass analysis. Once we did, all the transit shifts stabilized."

A second engineer, Winder, jumped up just as eagerly. He couldn't seem to get words out of his mouth fast enough. He tripped over the two engineers nearest him, Tucker and Jamie, and would've fallen if not for the steadying hands of a fourth engineer, Toma. "Captain," he thrust his datapad into Rex's hands, "Zinc is right! See? I did all the calculations here on my 'pad and even allowing for the technological differences here on the Kaz'harian ship, we can compensate for the irregularities. We still just need to shift-"

Rex put up a hand to stop the chaingun fire blast of words.

Chopper snorted quietly, and Echo knew exactly what that particular look from the Captain meant. _Bottom line it for me._

"We have a few more details we are hammering out, but yes, it will work," the ARC said confidently.

The 501st Captain took the pad from Winder and studied it carefully. The engineer was so excited to be handing over his work he actually bounced from foot to foot. "How much more time you need?" Rex asked, addressing Winder directly.

The engineer looked like a flying Brezak caught in a LAAT spotlight. "Uhhhh..."

Rex looked at his chrono. He needed to sleep.

"Three more hours, maybe less," Echo said confidently, from his position on the bunk.

"Alright, then, carry on. I'll get food and caf sent down," he said, and spoke several quiet crisp commands into his wrist comm. He then navigated carefully over the overabundance of engineers and made his way to his footlocker. The troopers parted respectfully in his path to make room and he quickly shed his armor plates. He disappeared into the refresher, which was thankfully free of engineers. He emerged a few minutes later, feeling relaxed but no less tired after a quick shower. He stepped through the gauntlet once again and made his way to his bunk, sitting down back against the wall wearing just the bottom to his bodysuit.

A few minutes later, Trapper appeared at the door balancing several plates of fruit and a carafe of caf. He looked none too pleased at played servant droid for the boys from the five oh first in the middle of the night. As soon as he departed, Zinc chuckled. "Sir, you did that on purpose didn't you?"

Rex gestured to the engineer to toss him a piece of fruit, which he easily caught. He bit into the food, swiping at a piece of juice that dripped at his chin with the back of his hand. "Not sure what you could possibly be referencing."

"We all thought you hadn't noticed that he was treating us like a bunch of shinies," Tucker chimed in.

Rex said nothing, finishing up his fruit. He chucked the core at the waist recycler in the corner and it landed neatly in the bin.

"Nothing escapes the notice of our Captain," Jamie said with absolute confidence.

Rex continued to observe the engineers without speaking, letting them continue their conversation. Echo focused the group back on the phase conversion issue and he listened to the quiet hum of voices as they exchanged ideas. It was a reassuring sound- the sound of vode working together. He let his eyes drift shut. He fell asleep still sitting up, as the others continued to work around him.

Sometime during the night, the engineers definitely solved the phase conversion issue and quietly left the room. Winder silently saluted the Captain as he left, pride in the five oh first evident in every line of his body.

# # #

_A/N: Rex, Cody and the legions are getting closer and closer to Coruscant. What changes await them after three months away? _

_Thank you to everyone who submitted clone names. You may notice your names are starting to appear in the story._


	6. Chapter 6 The Darkness Within

**"Whatever Happened to Captain Rex?"**

**Chapter Six**

"I'm going for a run," Chopper announced, after the last engineer had left. "Need to burn off a little energy before I sleep."

"Mmmwwwwph," Echo mumbled, not having any problems with excess energy. He was too exhausted to form any actual words. He didn't even hear Chopper leave the room. Fives arrived back in the room at the end of his shift. Echo snapped awake instantly, his body attuned to the presence of his closest brother. "Hey," he murmured, not even bothering to open his eyes. He could sense Fives was near.

"Sleep," Fives said, opening his footlocker and sliding his pauldron off his broad shoulders. His voice was both stern and gruffly affectionate at the same time. He came over and rustled Echo's hair, "or we'll both have the wrath of Kix upon us."

As if saying his name alone had the power to summon him, Kix entered. "I heard that, Fives." Echo peered an eye open and glanced at the medic. He was looking toward Fives. "There'll be an extra long hypo with your name on it next time you land your kama-ed shebs in my medbay."

Fives' hands automatically reached out to cover the threatened area.

Kix wagged a finger at him. "You know the rules."

Both ARCs spoke simultaneously, as if they'd been through this time and again. "Don't mess with the medic."

Kix gave a quiet 'hmmph' of satisfaction. "Right, and don't you two forget it."

Fives went back to his footlocker, and resumed shucking his armor. He stripped down in record time in the way only he could and headed off to the shower. Kix came over and perched himself carefully on the edge of Echo's bed. "As long as you're awake..."

"I'm not really…" muttered the sleepy ARC, but Kix had already pulled a scanner off his belt and was taking readings. He examined Echo's chest where he'd originally been shot, and then prodded at the spot where the spear had gone through his shoulder. This second action provoked a pained hiss and Echo drew back sharply.

Kix frowned. "You shouldn't still be that sensitive after surgery and such a long time in bacta."

"I'm just tired. My reactions are off," murmured Echo.

"Still, you should come by medbay tomorrow. I need to run tests."

Echo frowned. He didn't have time. Several of the engineers wanted his opinion on an issue they were having calibrating the ion drive. "Can't we just give it a day? Come on. I'm rooming with the GAR's finest medics, for kriff's sake." He smiled in the same way he used to do when he was trying to talk Fives into something. It was a good thing his vod had retreated to the refresher. The move had stopped working on him about ten missions ago, after that screw-up on Ord Biniir. Kix hesitated, then sighed and scrubbed wearily at his face. "Alright, but if any new symptoms develop, comm me right away."

"Absolutely," Echo nodded, "you're in charge."

Kix shook his head. "Sometimes I wonder." He muttered something unsavory under his breath about ARCs and turned back toward his bunk. Fives came out of the bathroom, not bothered in the least by the Kazzies' lack of towels. Echo rolled his eyes.

Kix stripped out of his uniform, and headed in to take his shower. Echo watched his brothers drowsily, feeling sleep pulling heavily at him. His eyes slid shut.

"What did Kix say?"

Echo peered an eye open and got an eyeful of Fives, who was standing directly in front of his bunk. His brother would do anything to get a rise out of him. But, he wasn't up for his brother's antics at the moment.

Echo had often pushed his body to the limit on missions, but this fatigue felt deeper than usual. He knew he was still recovering but something felt _off_. He felt guilty for not mentioning it to Kix, but if he did he would've ended up back in medbay and he'd just gotten _out_ of there.

"Echo?" Fives asked, concerned.

"Ugggh, Fives," Echo said, trying to keep his voice light and teasing as usual. He shifted his body, getting comfortable and quickly swallowing down a gasp of pain when he moved his shoulder. "Everything's good. Not to worry." He deliberately kept his voice light. He rolled over and faced the wall, immediately falling into an exhausted slumber.

# # #

Cody and Rex worked non-stop through the day in the briefing room, continuing their discussions in a secluded table in the far corner of the mess. There was still so much to do before Coruscant and they could both feel the minutes ticking down before they dropped out of hyperspace. They had to have their cover stories perfect and plan for every contingency. Exhausted and needing a change of pace, Rex suggested they head to his quarters in the command wing.

There was no place to sit in the oversized Kazzie room, so Rex and Cody sat on the floor with their backs up against the wall. A plate of fruit and a pot of caf sat between them, with flimsis and datapads stacking up on the floor around them.

Cody bit into another fruit, needing the rush of glucose to keep his brain fueled and his body going a little longer. He couldn't take any more Kazzie caf at the moment. He gestured around the quarters, which showed no signs of habitation. "Heard you're not sleeping here."

Rex looked up from where he was studying a datapad, his face lit up by the blue screen. "You heard right." He didn't offer any explanation for his actions. He turned his attention back to the pad.

Cody went back to chewing thoughtfully. "Couldn't sleep?"

Rex snorted. "Not a wink. Hate this room."

"You sleeping now?"

"Yes," Rex sounded somewhat amused Cody was asking about his sleeping habits. He set down the datapad. "You?"

"Not really. No."

Rex studied Cody for a long moment. He looked for a moment like he was going to further the discussion, prompt his vod to talk. The two men regarded each other steadily before each turning away and picking up their datapads again.

No. Clones didn't talk about such things.

"We're going to need someone to contact Coruscant when we drop out of hyperspace," Rex said, his face once again lit up by the blue screen.

Cody nodded in agreement, reviewing their plans, contingencies and scenarios. "Agreed. A friendly voice that will catch their attention right away so they don't blow our shebs out of space."

"The commando droids have imitated our voices so many times. Since the rest of us are listed as either dead, AWOL or captured, it is probably not a good idea for one of us clones to initiate contact," Rex looked thoughtful. "However, a Jedi might carry more weight. General Kenobi would've been perfect for this. He can read emotions and knows exactly what to say."

"Unfortunately, the great negotiator is still out of commission," Cody said. "What about Commander Tano?"

Rex paused, considering then nodded. "Agreed. She's a known favorite of the Jedi Council."

"Alright, then we're done here," Cody said, standing up and stretching, bones cracking and popping. "We'll reconvene in the morning. You'll talk to Commander Tano?"

Rex nodded and left the room.

Cody stood and followed him out, glancing at his chrono. 0200. Not bad. More sleep than he got most nights. Not that he expected to really be able to sleep anyway. He sighed and headed back to his quarters, trying to ignore the faint lingering smell of _Barriss_ that still clung to the room.

# # #

No one on the ship seemed to need Ahsoka. No one except... Appo.

After what happened with Rex, she'd gone back to her quarters and stayed there. She knew she was hiding. But, she was frustrated and angry and not sure what do with the terrible jumble of emotions swirling around inside of her. She felt alone, even on a ship of thousands and the feeling frustrated her even further.

Fortunately, her quarters were large enough to allow her to work out, so she'd run through all of her katas. She'd worked herself into exhaustion, and then decided to do all of them _again_. Muscles trembling with fatigue, she was just able to get herself in the shower and wash off before she collapsed on the bed.

She awoke to a crisp knock on the door. She leapt up and immediately grabbed her lightsaber from under her pillow. It was the first solid uninterrupted sleep she'd gotten since before the Battle of Kaz'haria. It took a long moment to identify the unfamiliar surroundings and get her bearings.

"Commander Tano, are you alright in there?" the knock at the door came again.

She went to the door and opened it. Fullshot, who had joined the the five oh first a few months before the Battle of Kaz'haria, held out a plate of fruit and a carafe of liquid. "Commander Tano? You missed breakfast. Captain asked me to bring this by."

Ahsoka blinked, still felling completely out of it. "Breakfast?" she mumbled thickly, feeling slow and dim-witted. "Um... what time is it?"

"0800, sir."

0800? Force! She hadn't slept that late in years. "Thank you, Fullshot." She managed a smile, and the trooper's entire countenance lit up. He saluted and left.

She couldn't squash a sense of disappointment Rex hadn't brought the food by himself, selfish as it was, but was still pleased he was keeping such close tabs on her that he'd noticed she'd missed a meal. Rex had always been good with the small details. It was one of the qualities she lov-

She sighed and choose a spot in the center of the room to eat. She sat cross-legged and ate the simple meal. The Kazzie fruit wasn't bad once you got used the different flavor. She opened the carafe of liquid and gave it a tentative sniff. It wasn't caf. Of course, Rex knew she was not a caf drinker. A heady aroma came off the dark liquid. It was surprisingly sweet and tasted just like the Kazzie fruit. Juice.

Her eyes widened as she took the first sip. After months in captivity, the taste seemed like incredible luxury. She closed her eyes and took another long sip, letting the taste rush over her taste buds. She kept drinking, gulping down the sweet, refreshing liquid. She could feel her entire body sighing with pleasure as she quickly drained the entire carafe and held the empty container in her hands.

No, they couldn't be together. But, Rex was making it very clear he would always be there for her and watching out for her. She took a deep breath, forcing down a strong swell of emotions. She blinked back tears that she refused to shed. She considered exercising herself into exhaustion again, but decided to leave the room.

She weighed her options. She could head to the bridge or go to the medbay to check on her master. She'd been ordered to rest as much as possible by Coric to recover from her time in the dungeons and the labs. She knew Cody, Rex and Ko were running everything with crisp clone efficiency. She was curious, of course, about the details of what they were doing but also didn't want to give off the impression she did not trust their skills and competencies. She knew they would come to her if they needed her assistance.

She headed to medbay to check on her master and General Kenobi. Ahsoka greeted Coric upon entering. Kix seemed to be off-duty and she was glad the other medic was getting some much needed rest. She headed over to her master's bedside and picked up his hand.

_Skyguy already looks better._

She smiled with relief, and squeezed his hand lightly to let her Master know she was here. He did not acknowledge the movement, but she felt better all the same. She stayed for several more minutes, talking to him softly and reassuring him all was well. She then visited with Master Kenobi for a while doing the same. She was about to leave when she felt someone watching her.

"Hello commander."

"Appo!"

The clone commander smiled, his face still showing signs of pain and fatigue from his captivity. However, his pleasure at seeing her again was unmistakable. "I am glad to see you are well."

"When did you get out of bacta?"

Coric walked over and stood next to the commander's bed, arms folded across his chest. "This morning. He is _supposed_ to be resting."

The five oh first commander scowled fiercely, shooting the medic a dark look at being interrupted. He glanced back over at Ahsoka, as if pleading for help. It was such a typical clone move, yet so atypical of the fierce clone commander who'd defended her time and time again in the dungeons, the Jedi padawan burst out laughing.

Appo startled, as if making someone laugh with pleasure was a new experience for him. But, then his face creased up in a pleased smile again. It was a good look for him and took away all the fierceness from his demeanor.

"I won't keep him long, I promise," Ahsoka said, walking across the medbay quickly and standing next to Appo's bed. "A quick visit, Coric. Please?" She took the five oh first commander's hand in hers, just as she had with both the Jedi Generals. However, there was no mistaking the huge rush of _pleasure_ the clone took at the gesture. "The commander and I were locked in the same prison cell on Darkknell." She winked at Appo. She felt another rush of pleasure off of the clone. "We have a bit of a history together, don't we?"

Coric unfolded his arms and pulled his medical scanner off his belt. He took some quick readings. "Fine. A short visit." He walked off, muttering something under his breath about: "Jedi always wanting to break all the rules…"

Ahsoka returned her attention to Appo and noticed he was looking at her intently. She felt slightly uncomfortable under such scrutiny, but then reminded herself it was his natural personality. He looked down at their interlocked hands and smiled again.

_Oh._

She suddenly realized her error. "Are you thirsty? I can get you water. I can check with Coric to see if you are allowed-" She withdrew her hand as if making to move away to get the offered drink.

The five oh first commander frowned at the lose of physical contact. Ahsoka felt immediately guilty, feeling his profound sense of loss intently. Unlike Rex, who was extremely adept at shielding his emotions, Appo projected everything he was feeling so strongly it hit her like a physical blow. She felt something else he was projecting; this was the first time in his life someone had touched him in affection. Every other contact he'd had in short life had been either a clinical touch or a physical blow.

The thought hit her with such an impact she sucked her breath in sharply. "Are you alright, commander?" Appo looked at her, care and concern immediately apparent in his eyes.

Ahsoka stared back at him, wondering how men who had never known affection in their lives could still show empathy for others. She wondered how much longer it would last. How much longer until the war wiped all shreds of humanity out of men like Appo and they were left as soldiers who reacted without feeling? And, what would it take to drive them over the edge?

"Yes, I-" she shook her head, trying to voice what she was feeling. She looked at Appo, taking a deep breath. He held her gaze, his brown eyes looking into hers. She could still see an innocence there, the same thing she saw when she looked into the gaze of other clones, but there was something else, too. There was a certain hardness to his gaze now that hadn't been there before. He was changing. His experiences were changing him and his eyes were becoming darker. How much longer until she looked into the eyes of the clones and she could no longer see innocence at all?

The door of the medbay swished open. "Coric, have you seen Commander Tano?"

They both looked over at the new arrival, the voice unmistakable. She felt another flood of emotions come over Appo.

Apprehension. Anger. Fear. Respect and hate both mixed together.

She sucked in another breath and tried to tame down her own swirling tide of emotions.

"Rex," she said, turning to meet the new arrival.

Rex walked briskly over and stood at parade rest in front of them. Ahsoka breathed a sigh of relief she had extracted her hand.

"Commander Appo, it is good to see you are on the mend, sir," Rex said, his voice crisp and polite.

Coric called out a greeting from where he was treating a patient across the medbay. "Captain."

Appo studied Rex for a long moment.

The five oh first commander studied Rex. "I was not aware you had been reinstated into the GAR, _Captain_." There was no mistaking the coldness in his voice.

There was a flash of emotion across Rex's face, before he quickly suppressed it, as he refused to be baited. "You are correct in your assumptions, Commander. We are maintaining comm silence. Rank corrections will have to be dealt with upon our return to Coruscant." His voice was calm and portrayed absolute confidence he would be restored to his proper rank. Ahsoka knew from her conversations with Rex, he was not as confident as he appeared in this conversation. However, he was not willing to betray any weakness in front of Appo. "I would brief you further, however it is my understand you are not on duty. I do not wish to disturb your rest, _sir_." Rex turned his attention back to Ahsoka, effectively dismissing the other clone. "Commander Tano, we require your assistance in the briefing room."

Ahsoka smiled, pleased she was needed and that Rex came to ask her in person. "Absolutely, Rex." She forgot to use his title, and felt a flare of instant irritation from Appo at her familiarity with the other clone. She glanced over at Appo and saw him watching the two of them with his intense dark scowl back in place. Any hints of warmth and pleasure were now gone from his countenance.

Rex made a gracious nod of his chin to Ahsoka allowing her to walk before him.

"Thank you for sending breakfast down to me, Rex. It was a pleasant surprise," Ahsoka said, as they walked out of medbay together. She wanted to make sure she acknowledged his thoughtful gesture.

"Just doing my job, Commander."

Behind her she felt another huge spike of irritation and anger. She frowned in puzzlement.

"Everything alright?" Rex turned to her, concern clear in his voice, just as the door swished closed. She felt another spike of emotion from Appo.

She took a deep breath. They were now in the corridor and walking toward the lift that would take them to the bridge. "Yes. Just a little worried about Appo."

They headed into the next corridor. Rex cocked his head to the side. "Appo? What's wrong with him?" He snorted, then laughed at his own joke as they walked side-by-side. "Other than the obvious, of course."

Ahsoka laughed, too. She glanced over at Rex and saw his eyes shining with amusement. She felt terrible laughing at Appo's expense but was also grateful there was no awkwardness between them. She knew it was because Rex was handling it so well. She hoped he truly was handling it as well as he seemed, and it was not all a facade. Since he was good at blocking his emotions, she had no way of knowing for sure. She looked over at Rex again, and noticed the amusement had died on his face. She was taking too long to respond.

He frowned. "Did something happen with Appo?" He made a sound deep in his throat. He lowered his voice. "He might be a _commander._ But, he is no Cody. There is something about him-"

She placed a placating hand on his arm. "No, Rex. Nothing like that." She felt a twinge of guilt, feeling like she was withholding part of the truth. It was _something_ like that. She sighed, trying to explain. "He seems... mentally off-set after his time in the dungeons-"

"Oh, that's fekkin' great," Rex shook his head.

"Rex," Ahsoka admonished.

"Mentally off-set?" he snorted again. They walked into the lift together.

She was relieved to see there was no one else in the lift so they could continue their discussion in private. "I probably could have worded that better." She tried to word it in such a way it would not damage Appo in Rex's eyes. She didn't know what would happen when they returned to Coruscant, but if Rex and Appo had to continue to work together in the future, it would not do to have them at each other's throats. "Traumatic experiences can leave us… vulnerable. Even hardened soldiers, such as yourselves, can't be expected to come out of experiences like this without mental scars."

Rex still looked skeptical. "You're saying Appo has mental scars?"

"On some level, yes. They take time to heal, like any other scars. Some fade. Some don't go away completely. They will always be there."

"What does it have to do with you?" There was no mistaking the displeasure in Rex's voice. He fairly bristled when it came to the topic of Appo.

"The commander and I shared the same prison cell for two months on Darkknell."

Rex was shocked into silence. He closed himself off so completely emotionally Ahsoka could not get any kind of reading on him. She looked at him, trying to get some kind of reaction. Rex continued to stare straight ahead, refusing to even look at her.

"Rex?" she prompted, "say something."

"We have work to do." Rex said, his voice tight-lipped. The lift stopped, and he led the way onto the bridge, his body taut and rigid.

# # #

_A/N: Appo is awake. Mmmm... now things get interesting._

_A note about Appo's rank. I mentioned this before in Rex I, but it probably bears repeating. This story was started in August 2010, years before "Darkness on Umbara" aired. At that time, Appo was still a Commander in canon. Since I started the story with him as a commander, I wasn't going to suddenly make him a sergeant. Not sure how they were going to explain such a wild jump in rank on the show. Commander is the highest rank in the fleet a clone can hold and sergeant is the lowest rank of an officer. Such a wild swing in rank in such a short amount of time is... ah... unusual. I would have been curious to see what explanation the show would have come up with to explain such an oddity._


	7. Chapter 7 The Brink of Collapse

**Rex II**

**Chapter 7**

As tired as he was Echo was not able to stay asleep. His body felt off. Wrong somehow in a way he couldn't identify. His pulse was racing and every sound was magnified. He could hear Fives breathe as he slept and even the normally reassuring sound seemed overly loud. He reached up to massage his aching temples and had to clamp his jaw shut to stifle down a yelp of pain.

_Maybe I should go to medbay and get this checked out._

But, he knew how cautious Kix and Coric could be. If he set foot back in their domain he would spend the rest of the trip trapped in their clutches. He wanted to work, like everybody else was doing. Clones were not bred to sit idle. He wasn't allowed to resume full-duty, but at least he could feel he was contributing _something_.

He was just having some success drifting off again when Chopper came back from his run. He entered quietly and shed his armor with little sound. Chopper always moved with stealth. But the sounds still seemed amplified. Echo sighed in frustration.

Chopper stopped, cocking his head to the side and made his way over to Echo. He knelt down by his bunk.

"Echo?" Chopper whispered, his voice so soft it could barely be heard above the breathing of the sleeping clones. His eyes met his brother's in the dark, asking if he was OK. He cocked his head back toward Fives and Kix, the unspoken gesture asking if he should go wake one or both of them up.

Echo quickly shook his head, and then winced.

Chopper immediately frowned, too perceptive not to notice the tiniest detail even if the dark.

"I'm fine," Echo mouthed.

The scarred trooper still looked unhappy and glanced back uncertainly at the other two inhabitants in the room. He looked at Echo again.

Echo shook his head. "Let them sleep," he whispered under his breath. "I'm just sore."

Chopper hesitated. He looked unconvinced, but finally nodded and moved away. He stripped down and headed off into the refresher. A few minutes later, Rex came in late from the night shift and also quickly shed his armor before sitting down heavily on his bunk and sighing. A moment later though, he could feel the Captain was studying him curiously.

"Echo?" Rex said softly, crossing the room and standing over his bunk.

"Captain, I'm fine. Kix already checked me out," he was touched by the concern of the others, but fek, a vod couldn't get any sleep with all of this brotherly love._  
_

"OK."

Rex headed off to the shower and Echo heard him speaking softly with Chopper. Normally, he could sleep through routine chatter, but he couldn't remember his senses ever feeling so... gah... wired?

"I have a shave kit," Rex was saying softly to Chopper. "Go ahead and use it first."

"Didn't you just have the kit?"

"Yes," Rex sounded exasperated. "Groups of vode from the five oh first keep insisting upon giving me their slots. I have it until morning." He sounded completely perplexed as to why he would be treated differently from anyone else.

Chopper chuckled. "I have noticed your name being mentioned a lot in the mess and the gym."

"I don't get it."

"No, you wouldn't."

Chopper left his explanation at that and Echo soon heard the telltale scraping of stubborn stubble being removed. Knowing sleep was impossible, he lay awake and simply listened. His hearing was so sensitive he knew when the razor passed to Rex, because the Captain shaved with a different technique from Chopper. He could hear everything as both men cleaned their faces and scraped their scalps clean.

"I can get the back," Rex offered.

A slight pause. Echo knew Chopper was sensitive about being touched due to his scars, but he agreed and then did the same for Rex. He and Fives had trimmed each other's hair often enough. It was easy when somebody's body was identical to your own. It took only minutes for the two men to finish grooming and head off to bed. Their breathing soon joined in with the others, but Echo lay awake, exhausted beyond measure. He felt miserable in his own skin.

In the morning, he heard the others gear up and head off to their shifts. He pretended to sleep through it all. After they all cleared out, he settled out to get some rest but shortly afterwards heard the door slide open again.

_Fek it all._

"I know you're awake, vod."

"Fives," Echo murmured thickly, without rolling over. He was afraid to move, not sure if he could handle it at the moment.

"I brought you food."

Echo simply grunted, giving a noncommittal response.

"You OK? I could get someone to cover my shift."

"_Fives_," Echo grumbled, "I was shot _and_ stabbed. I'm just _tired_." He tried to put the right edge of impatience in his voice. He held perfectly still, tension thick in the room as he waited for his brother's reaction.

"I can stay with you. I've had a number of vod offer to cover my shifts. Everyone knows what you did back on Darkknell."

"Fives, get out."

"I can comm someone to-"

"I don't need someone watch me sleep. Will you go already?"

"Fine. I'm going. Comm if you need me."

"I won't."

"You better or I'll come down to check on you."

"Fine," Echo agreed with a sigh, "I'll comm if I need you. Now will you go?"

"Alright, yes. I might stop back anyway-"

"Fives!"

"OK, OK, I'm leaving."

Echo sighed with relief once his vod finally left. His head was pounding and the room was spinning. He realized he needed to vomit.

_Fek._

He rolled over, crying out in pain as the movement jarred his shoulder.

_Shab. Stupid fekkin' bacta. After all that time in there and the shabla' stuff didn't work._

He pushed up, his limbs shaking and staggered to his feet. The room spun alarmingly and he ended up sinking to his knees on the floor.

_Fek. Fek. Fek._

The last thing he needed was to vomit in the middle of the room. He forced himself up again and staggered to the refresher.

_Gah. It didn't seem like such a long walk yesterday._

Limbs shaking he made it just in time to empty the contents of his stomach into the toilet. He closed his eyes panting, feeling worse than ever. He couldn't remember what time he'd agreed to meet the engineers. He sniffed himself. He should shower. But, he wasn't sure if he could stand long enough to wash. Maybe if he rested a few minutes...

He was tired. That was all. Just like he told Fives... His eyes slid shut and he dozed off for several long moments sitting up by the toilet. The acrid smell of vomit woke up him up with a start and he stared down in confusion at the durasteel bowl.

Disoriented, he glanced around the unfamiliar surroundings. It took him a long time to remember where he was and how he'd gotten there. Finally, he pieced it all together. Kazzie ship. Right. We raided their fortress. Rescued two Legions. Stole their ships and now we're flying home in their massive warship.

He snorted, even though the simple movement made his head pound again.

_That was badass. Even for an ARC._

Fueled by a slight surge of adrenaline, he pushed himself up on shaking limbs.

_If we could pull all that off, I can get myself off the toilet._

_The engineers are coming over. We're going to review the ion engine calibration. _

They would need the ion engines when they came out into sublight speed. As he staggered back into the main room, he tried to think through what could be causing the calibration issues. Everything started to spin alarmingly again, but he was deep in thought working through power cell mechanics. His limbs started to go numb and dimly in the back of his mind he realized he was weaving dangerously on his feet.

_So, if the engines on the ship utilize internal fusion reactions like on a standard Republic cruiser, then we'll need to check if the charged ion particles are being properly forced through the exhaust pipes. If the timing is off, even slightly, it would make it nearly impossible to-_

He was still stubbornly thinking through calibration mechanics when his body suddenly gave way and he crashed down heavily to the floor. He didn't move.

# # #

Ahsoka followed Rex into the conference room. She looked around the large room and into the canopy of stars beyond. Rex was standing in front of the wall of transparisteel, standing rigidly at attention staring out into the expanse. No one else was in the room. He was blocking her out of his emotions. The only time she'd been able to get a read on him was when he was unconscious on TriLuna. But, she could tell from his body language that he was seething.

"Rex, talk to me," she stood beside him and place a hand on his armored bicep.

He stared down at her from behind his dark T-visor, remaining rigidly silent. She stepped in closer to him, moving between his body and the wall. Rex inhaled sharply. She placed a hand on each of his arms and could feel his muscles trembling. It was humbling to know she affected him so powerfully. But, he still refused to speak.

"Rex-" she implored again.

"Am I interrupting something?" a voice from behind startled both of them.

Rex and Ahsoka spun around. Cody stood in the doorway of the conference room and Trapper was behind him. His voice made it clear he knew he _was_ interrupting something. He stood at such an angle he blocked Trapper's view completely and any prying eyes from the bridge.

Ahsoka quickly dropped her hands and moved away from the transparisteel wall. "Rex was showing me the view." She took another step away from the five oh first captain and made a sweeping gesture toward the expanse of streaking stars. "It is…" she shot a look toward Rex, "…beyond words."

Cody looked back and forth between Rex and Ahsoka and then cocked his head to the side. "As you say, commander."

From behind Cody, Trapper cleared his throat impatiently. "Holding scalding hot Kazzie caf. Not getting any lighter."

"Oh, suck it up Trapper," Cody said over his shoulder, "about time you do your share of grunt work."

The ARF trooper 'hmmmped' unhappily and grumbled. "You said I was _delegating _all my duties. I say I was demonstrating my leadership potential."

Rex snorted.

Cody shot a look at the five oh first captain. "You find this funny? Watch it. Or next time we have to switch troops around, he might end up transferred over to you. He can demonstrate all of that _potential_ as a boy in blue."

"You wouldn't dare!" Trapper gasped.

"Absolutely not!" Rex objected. "We have standards!"

"Hey!" the ARF trooper objected, frowning fiercely at Rex, "are you saying I'm not _good enough_ to be five oh first-"

Rex and Trapper were still arguing when Cody put up his hand for silence. "Enough!" He barked, his commander-in-charge voice coming out. "We've delayed long enough." He shot a look at Rex, who had the good sense to dip his chin in silent apology. He glared at Trapper who set down the pots of carafe and retrieved mugs from a cabinet on the side wall. Cody flipped on the holodisplay. "I take it you briefed the commander already on why she is here?"

Ahsoka looked over at Rex and raised an eyebrow.

Rex blew out a defeated sigh. "No. We were discussing another issue related to a member of the five oh first."

Cody cocked his head to the side again. "Fascinating." His voice held a definite hint of sarcasm. He turned his attention back to the holochart, studying it with a critical eye. "I've prepared full briefs. Trapper?"

The ARF trapper distributed datapads to everyone present.

Ahsoka read through the information with surprise. "You want me to speak to High Command as soon as we drop out of hyperspace?"

Cody and Rex both nodded as one, studying her reaction.

"We think of all of us, you'd have the best chance of getting a positive reaction. Timing will be critical. General Kenobi would also have been an excellent choice, but he's unconscious," Cody explained.

"But, why me?" She was not known for her eloquence with words.

"You are a known favorite of the Jedi Council," Rex said bluntly. Ahsoka inhaled, it was strange to hear him speaking to her again. "They will be shocked to see you since you have been missing so long, but are very unlikely to fire on one of their own. Jedi have the power to read minds, correct?"

Ahsoka stared at Rex. Their eyes met for a moment, and she could feel Cody watching them intently. Of course he knew the answer to that question already. He had experienced it first hand on TriLuna.

"Yes," Ahsoka confirmed, "with limitations, of course."

"And, they can also confirm your identity?" Cody prompted. "Jedi can communicate telepathically?"

There was an intensity about Cody as he asked the question in the same way Rex had phrased his question. It was also as if he knew much more than he was letting on and the briefing was more of formality to bring Ahsoka up to speed on the plan. Suddenly, Ahsoka was uncomfortable and wondered why it was _both_ these command clones had such intimate knowledge of the Force. The Jedi Council would be most displeased to know their most elite soldiers were privy to such secrets, the ones they normally kept for themselves.

# # #

They went through every aspect of the plan exhaustively and made Ahsoka practice her lines again and again. She might not be Obi Wan Kenobi, the Negotiator, but she liked to think she could be counted on in a crisis.

Although it seemed she had handled this latest situation with Rex very badly. As they left the conference room, he headed straight for the lift. She followed him and stepped into the lift with him. She tried to think of what to say and how to explain about everything she and Appo had been through together during their time in the dungeons. She knew she had to handle this carefully, and tried to think it through from _his_ perspective. This has been an incredibly difficult time period for Rex as well filled with emotional turbulence. She had felt the raw emotions sometimes come through to her in bursts, and he was normally so tightly controlled. Part of her felt like it was wrong for him to be angry at her for factors that were almost completely outside of her control. And, another part of her understood that most of his anger was likely more stemming from his being angry that he could not be there during her time of need. Instead it had been the one person who had been given the command of his legion in his absence. She realized with a start that Rex must feel like Appo had _replaced_ him. Stepped in and taken over when Rex had been sent away.

She took a deep breath, determined to speak to him.

The lift doors stopped and opened admitting more passengers. Ahsoka grimaced in frustration. They couldn't talk now. She was pushed to the back of the large lift to make room. She kept an eye on Rex needing to know where he departed. The lift made several more stops taking on more clones. She was pushed so far to the back she barely made it out when she saw Rex suddenly step off on the recreation level.

"Excuse me!" she darted out just as the doors were closing. She ran to catch up to Rex, who was already down the hallway and turning around the next corner. She hurried after him.

Rex turned his head back sharply and she could tell from the way his helmet snapped back to regard her that he did not appreciate being followed. He strode into what she instantly realized was the gym. It was enormous as she'd come to expect of everything on the Kazzie ship. Two troopers were working out in one corner of the gym. Rex tugged off his helmet and glared in their direction. The troopers immediately grabbed their gear and hightailed out of the gym.

Ahsoka shook her head. "Big bad Captain."

Rex still didn't acknowledge her. He started pulling off pieces of his armor, and setting them down on a nearby bench. She knew some of the clones preferred to work out in their bodysuits for comfort. Some of the Kazzie equipment had been pushed aside. She glanced back at a piece of equipment with odd pulleys and bars whose function she could not identify. She leaned back against it, arms folded across her chest and watched Rex expertly strip down. She was always amazed at the ease with which the clones slipped in and out of the complex plating. But, there was no one she enjoyed watching suit up and down more than Rex. It was the best part of being in the GAR.

He finished all too quickly, and she let out a sigh. He glanced sharply in her direction. His face was still set in a hard line, and she wondered how long he was going to remain angry. He headed to an anti-grav weight machine, almost identical to the one used back on _the Resolute_ except for a larger seat and more weight settings. Rex started breathing out, pacing himself evenly as he pushed against the weights. She was content to simply watch him for a while, as it made for a relaxing end to a long day. They often worked out together back on _the Resolute_. However, Rex would always talk to her then, even if it was simple talk about missions, training, personnel and other five oh first matters. They still _talked_.

"Rex," Ahsoka finally said in exasperation, tired of being ignored.

He paused, frozen halfway in a rep, muscles straining and trembling. He'd been at it for a while and it was obvious he was tiring. She used the Force to release his hands, and ease the weight back into position.

He glared at her. He severely disliked it when she used the Force to push any part of his body against his will. He pushed up from the workout seat, and stalked away.

She followed him. "Rex, we need to talk."

"No, we don't," he ground out, heading over to the thick durafoam matting. He dropped down and launched into push-ups, completing rep after rep with perfect form. It was an effective way to completely ignore her again.

"Rex, will you just listen to me?"

No reaction. Ahsoka waited for him to finish. But, he didn't show any sign of stopping. She continued to wait, trying to exhibit Jedi patience. After ninety minutes, Ahsoka finally huffed with annoyance. With a burst of Force energy, she pulled Rex forcefully to his feet so he was facing her. She didn't mean to pull him up so quickly. He had to stumble to keep his balance. Once she was sure he had properly regained his footing, she released him from her grip.

As soon as she did, he grabbed her and pushed her up against the nearest wall, pinning her there between his body and the wall. "_Don't _-_ever-_ _do-_ _that-_ _again_." His eyes were flashing with anger. She had never seen him this angry. His sides were heaving with exertion.

"Rex," she said, trying to reach him, "I just want to talk to you."

He squeezed his eyes shut a moment, still breathing heavily. He was obviously fighting for control. He finally spoke and his words came out as a pained ragged gasp that tore at her heart. "I can't take this, Ahsoka."

Before she could respond, he pulled away.

# # #

_A/N: This chapter was originally going to be longer, but I figured this was enough excitement for one week. Wait until next Monday. Trust me, it will be very memorable. I could use some more clone names if you would like to name a character. There are always clones popping in and out of the story, especially now on board the massive ship. Some of the clones might stick around for a while, and others might appear only for a scene. No guarantees. (And, yes, be aware if you submit a name your clone could also be killed off in a battle scene.) I have a new clone in mind for a scene coming up. _


	8. Chapter 8 Broken

**Rex II**

** Chapter 8 **

"I can't take this, Ahsoka," Rex said, each word a pained, ragged gasp.

Ahsoka felt her heart breaking.

"Rex." She leaned forward, brushing her lips up against his. It was an electric shock. She felt his whole body react to the jolt. He gasped, and pulled back.

_This is probably a bad idea._

But, she couldn't stop. Not now.

She leaned in again. Her lips brushed up against his rough stubbled chin, tasting his skin. It was the gentlest of touches, but she felt Rex shudder in response.

"Ahsoka," he whispered her name low and deep in this throat. "Stop." It was a half-hearted plea as if he wasn't sure he had the strength to hold her back. He sounded lost and broken. Her eyes widened and stared at him, mesmerized by his brown eyes. They stayed that way for a long moment, simply looking at each other. Two people of action, both afraid to move.

She could feel so much turmoil inside of Rex. She moved first, reaching a hand up to gently massage his scalp. Rex tensed up and looked like he was going to pull away, but then allowed the touch. He'd always had a fondness for when she touched his hair. She worked her fingers through the freshly shorn blonde stubble as she spoke to him, "We need to talk about Appo."

Rex scowled. "Fek Appo. Regretting we rescued the shabuir."

"Rex," she chastised, "I don't know what it is between you and him-"

"He's _not_ five oh first. Everyone knows it."

Ahsoka felt the need to defend Appo. "During the Battle of Kaz'haria, he fought very bravely."

"Oh, I'm sure he did," his voice dripped with sarcasm. "I've seen the way he operates. It's how he rose up to _commander._"

Ahsoka ignored the comment and pressed on. "He was there when I needed help most." Under her fingertips, she felt Rex grow even tenser, but she felt he needed to hear the truth. "I probably would not have survived Kaz'haria if not for him." She could feel Rex's mood grow even darker, but she continued on. "After our capture, we were thrown in the same cell-"

"I'd rather not be reminded be of _that_," Rex murmured darkly.

"It doesn't change what happened. We made several escape attempts over the next two months and each time he _protected_ me. So, whatever issues you have with him, Rex, I still consider him a valued friend _and_ a good commander." Rex snorted derisively at this last part. "The battle itself might not have gone well-"

"Didn't- go- well?" Rex practically spat out each word. "He takes over and not only does he fail to protect the Jedi, _all_ of whom end up injured, but the entire Legion gets c_aptured_! I'm sure he set a command record with that one. If he'd done his job _correctly_, none of you would've ended up locked in cells!"

"Rex, that's not fair. You can't blame the entire battle on Appo. Cody-"

"Cody? Where was Appo when the 212th was in trouble? We're supposed to have their backs! Cody nearly got killed!"

Ahsoka studied Rex carefully. "Is this really about Appo, or _your_ feelings about not being there?"

Rex ripped away from her, air escaping out of his throat in a hiss of angry frustration. She reached out and put a hand on his shoulder again, trying to pull him back. "Rex, don't push me away-"

He turned back, his eyes blazing with emotion. Ahsoka felt it then, a sense that this would be their last chance. Tomorrow they were docking in Coruscant. She was going back to the Temple and he was headed to the barracks. She would be under the watchful eyes of the Jedi and he would be always be confined by the GAR. But, right now, in this moment, they still had their freedom. She needed him. And, she needed to reassure him of her feelings before they were torn apart again. She closed the gap between them, more confident now. She leaned in, pressing her lips down to taste him again.

It was like setting fuel to fire.

Rex groaned and his arms automatically came up to lock around her. She deepened the kiss. She could tell he was the past the breaking point. She didn't know whether to rejoice or be terrified.

He pushed her back up against the wall, allowing him to more easily support her weight. With one powerful arm, he lifted her legs up and around his waist. It was an intimate embrace, even through their clothing. She gasped and he took the lead as her mouth opened, deepening the kiss. Their mouths continued to entangle together and she began to feel lightheaded from the fast pace of it all. Rex's mouth moved to her neck, and then on to her montral. Her breathing came in short gasps and she shuddered. They were both still fully clothed and already she felt like she was on the brink.

"Rex," her voice had changed in pitch. She wasn't sure what she was asking for, but she was sure only Rex could provide it. He continued his assault on her montral. She closed her eyes and-

His commlink suddenly went off, sounding a high priority alert signal chime.

Rex shifted his grip and instantly brought his wrist comm up to his lips. His voice was calm, even though his face was flushed. "This is Rex."

"This is Coric. We have a medical emergency."

"Report."

Rex exchanged a quick look with Ahsoka as he sat her gently down to the deck, and turned to gather up his armored plates.

"It's Echo. Came back from third shift and found him lying on the deck non-responsive. Kix is here with me. We've got him on a stretcher and we're about to head to medbay. His vitals are dangerously low and his response to stimuli is completely erratic."

Rex paused momentarily, brow furrowed with confusion. "Bottom line it for me."

"He's dropped into a coma. We need to get him to a medcenter stat."

"Medcenter," Rex murmured. He scowled, quickly resuming armoring up.

"The moment we drop back into normal space," Kix said, coming on-line. "The way his vitals are dropping, every second is critical."

"ArmyMed," Coric said, "top GAR facility on Corrie."

"No," Rex's response was immediate and emphatic, forcefully clipping on his weapons' belt.

"Echo is dying, Rex," Coric's said, his statement bringing a momentary shocked silence to both five oh first officers.

Rex's eyes closed for a moment and Ahsoka could see his struggle from his rigidly held body language. "I'll meet you in medbay."

He gave Ahsoka one quick last look and left the gym, tugging on his helmet as he exited.

# # #

_A/N: One day to go until they arrive on Corrie. A different sort of homecoming than the men from Ando._


	9. Chapter 9 Torn Apart

**Rex II**

**Chapter 9**

Rex headed out into the corridor, his mind in turmoil. His blood was boiling from what had almost happened in the gym. He had nearly taken Ahsoka up against the wall. Any trooper could have walked in on them in the midst of their coupling.

She would have let him take her. It was clear she welcomed him. He'd reacted more intensely than he'd thought possible. It had been difficult to hold himself back on TriLuna and he'd had a shattered leg at the time. Now, he was in peak physical condition and his body was throbbing painfully with need.

Fek. Literally.

He reached a hand down inside his armor and readjusted himself trying to get himself to fit a little more comfortably inside his codpiece. But, the touch of his own hand made the situation worse. He needed a long shower. He gave up on readjusting himself and being very uncomfortable within his codpiece. Wouldn't be the first time.

"Rex," Ahsoka ran after him, her steps quick and light as she ran to catch up to him.

_Fek. So much for his good intentions to stay away until he calmed down. _

He continued walking quickly, headed toward the lift, half-hoping they would run into other troopers along the way. But, it was late into the third-shift and the corridors were quiet. The lift doors opened.

_Of course the lift is empty._

Rex sighed inwardly as they entered the quiet intimacy of the lift together.

"Rex," Ahsoka started again, and placed one of her small hands on his armored forearm.

It was a simple touch but the effect on him was shocking. He closed his eyes and took a long dragging breath forcing himself not to react to her touch. His body was already reacting strongly to her near presence.

He had to forcibly tap down a growl of deep-seated sexual frustration from months of pent-up denial. He closed his eyes as he was assaulted with visions of once again picking up the Jedi commander, wrapping her around his waist and pushing her up against the wall. Except this time all he had to do was slam the emergency controls of the lift. It was late at night. Nobody would notice one stopped lift. He could rip off his codpiece and take her in his full armor. She could grip his armored shoulders, hold onto his helmet, and they could finish what they started in the gym. His body throbbed even more painfully.

There were no security holo-vids on these lifts, were there?

Thoughts of the consequences of what could happen to them if they were caught helped him get control of his burning feelings. A second or two later, when he cocked his helmet head toward her and responded, his voice was relatively calm. "Yes?"

"Are you alright? About Echo? You seemed upset when Coric mentioned the medcenter?"

A flood of emotions ran through Rex starting with anger and quickly changing to disbelief. But, he took a few seconds to once again get himself under control. It would likely be difficult the to explain to any non-clone the emotional pain of being decommissioned and sent for reconditioning. He decided he wasn't ready to discuss it.

"I'm fine."

Ashoka frowned. "Are you sure because you seemed upset-"

He shook his head. "Everything is under control." The lift doors opened and he exited ahead of her and briskly walked away.

# # #

Fives was walking to the mess after third shift when the call came in from Coric.

"You better come down to medbay."

Without even asking asking, Fives _knew, _but he had to say it anyway. "Echo?"

"Get down here. Coric out." The medic wouldn't say anything more.

_Fek. Fek. Fek._

Fives charged through the corridors, his armored boots clicking against the highly polished floors. He couldn't make it to the medbay fast enough.

_This is all my fault._

He hadn't heard from his vod for the entire shift. He'd been tempted to call him several times, and twice he almost left his post to double-check on him. But, he finally decided Echo must be getting some rest. He seemed so tired when he'd left in the morning.

_If only I'd gone to check on him, I should have been there for him-_

_Fek. If I'd been a better vod, he wouldn't have gotten injured in the first place. I took too long to find him on Darkknell. If I could have gotten to him sooner, then he wouldn't have gotten stabbed. He shouldn't have been fighting without me watching his back._

Fives rounded the final corner and skidded into medbay. He'd spent a great deal of time in here during the first four days when Echo had been in bacta.

"You're looking for Echo? He's over there," Commander Appo, now awake and alert, nodded to Fives as he ran through the door. One of the five oh first commander's arms was still bandaged and bound, but he otherwise looked much better than when the ARC had seen him in previous days.

Fives nodded a thank you to the commander and ran across the medbay. Echo was surrounded by activity. Digger and Glitch, two medics from the 212th, were standing on one side of Echo taking blood tests and running diagnostics on the injured ARC. They efficiently read numbers he results back and forth to each other, comparing numbers as they tallied with perfect clone efficiency. On Echo's other side, Kix and Coric, were also working in tandem, hooking up fluids and injecting the ARC with hypos. It looked like a chaos of activity, but as Fives watched, he realized the four medics were carefully coordinating results.

"He's not responding to the adrena-cortisizine," Digger announced.

"Let's try increasing the dosage of EGDTs," Coric frowned thoughtfully.

"Agreed," Kix said, reaching for another bag of fluids. Fives watched, feeling numb and detached as the medical team worked over Echo's pale and unresponsive form. He felt his stomach drop as the four medics shook their heads with frustration. He knew _that_ look. It was never good.

The door to medbay swished open and he looked over as the captain and the commander briskly entered.

Appo's eyes narrowed, but he did not call out a greeting to the captain. However, the moment he caught sight of the commander his entire body language changed. He straightened up and a smile crossed his features. "Commander Tano. Have you come to see me?"

He heard Rex hiss under his breath, shake his head slightly and then continue walking toward the back of medbay.

The commander smiled politely at Appo and said: "Sorry, we've come to see Echo."

Appo's face fell with disappointment, but he nodded.

Fives studied Rex and Ahsoka as they approached. Even fully armored, it was clear from his body language he was taut with tension. The commander was following a couple of steps behind him, rather than walking by his side, like she usually did. Her cheeks were flushed with color, as if she'd recently been exerting herself. Coric turned back and gave the two a quick perusal, muttering something under his breath that Fives couldn't hear before returning his attention to Echo.

"Fives," Rex said, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder. He squeezed his shoulder comfortingly.

Fives wasn't sure what was going on with the captain. But, Rex had _come back_ for them, and he was here when he needed him the most.

"Rex," Fives said, unable to keep the slight quiver out of his voice. Fek. He hated sounding weak. He looked back at the commander. She was close with all the men, and usually would come forward to comfort at a time like this, but something seemed to be holding her back at the moment. He considered her a close friend. Everyone in the Legion felt the same way about the commander. Fives cocked his head to the side, curious at the change in behavior. Ahsoka caught the look and came forward.

"Fives," she came forward, and embraced him, giving him a light brotherly hug, "how's Echo?"

He smelled it then when she came forward and embraced him. She smelled like the captain. He blinked in surprise. Temporarily taken aback.

_Oh. _

The reason for Coric's disapproval became clear.

"Eh," Fives mind went blank. _What was the question?_

"Let go of her, Fives."

Fives blinked and looked into Rex's helmet. He looked down at his arms and realized he was still holding onto his commander. Even without being able to see his vod's eyes, he could see and feel Rex's displeasure. He quickly dropped his arms and stepped back.

"Report," Rex snapped, turning his attention to the medics.

Coric shook his head. "Some kind of bacterium has invaded his bloodstream. Very unusual. Kazzie origin. Scanners didn't pick it up. We're trying to treat it like a regular with anti-infective protocols, but he's not responding. He needs the resources of a full medcenter."

Rex took a deep dragging breath and studied the still form on the bunk. Fives looked at Rex, trying to figure out what he was thinking. There hadn't been anytime to talk to him about his experiences at ArmyMed. None of them knew what happened to Captain Rex. And, the rest of his mystery... Fives wondered if they would ever get answers to his whereabouts for the time he'd been missing.

"Alright," Rex finally agreed, "but, if he goes, he is not going alone." He pointed to Kix. "You will be going with him as his personal medic and will stay with him at all times." Fives felt his insides clench at the thought of being separated from Echo. "Fives, you will also be going with him."

"Me?" Fives blinked, not sure if he'd heard correctly.

"Kix can't watch monitor him at all times. He will have to rest and eat. I don't want Echo left alone at _any_ time. If there is _any_ talk at _any_ time that he may not recover, you are to contact me right away. If they even _mention_ Kamino, you will contact me immediately. Is that clear?"

Fives nodded, still stunned at his good fortune.

And, then, Appo spoke from across the medbay. "You don't have the authority to do any of this, _Captain_. You are not _in_ the GAR." He folded his one good arm across his chest, looking smug. "However, if you need something, you could ask me-"

Rex crossed the medbay in several fast strides and was right in Appo's face. He grabbed the five oh first commander by the scruff of his oversized Kazzie tunic. "Echo is _my_ responsibility. I will take care of my own."

"Rex!" Ahsoka came up behind him, clearly irate. "Let him go. He's injured!"

With great reluctance, he released his hold on the five oh first commander. "There will come a time, Appo," Rex murmured low and quiet under his breath, as he stepped back.

"Did you just threaten me?" Appo blinked.

"I'll give the order for Echo to go the medical center," Ahsoka said loudly, quickly changing the subject. "And, Kix and Fives, as well. Will that do?"

Everyone turned their attention to her and after a long moment, Rex and Appo both nodded in agreement. Fives gave a sigh of relief, and returned his attention to Echo's still form lying on the medbay bunk.

Now, Echo just needed to survive long enough to make it back to Coruscant.

# # #

_A/N: I had a first draft of this completed on Friday and then somehow the file was deleted so I needed to start again afresh on Monday morning after a very, very busy weekend. Ah well. Nothing like a good rewrite. :) But anyway, it is finished now very late on Monday. Happy reading._


End file.
